D&D 5E Elemental Sorcerer Spell ideas

[NotAYakk]

Acid Stream - the sorcerer-only 1st-level evocation - has made me think again with the thematic problem with the sorcerer.

Namely, there are a bunch of elemental sorcerer types, but there is a shortage of elemental themed spells for them.

Acid Stream is a 1st level spell that shoots a stream of acid. Every creature in the stream that fails a dex save takes damage each turn unless someone burns an action before that turn to wipe the acid off.

1st level:
Acid Stream: Acid
Burning Hands: Fire
Thunderwave: Thunder
Ice Knife: Cold
Ray of Sickness: Poison
Witch Bolt: Lightning
Magic Missile: Force

Missing Psychic, Radiant and Necrotic. (7/10)

2nd level:
Aganazzar’s Scorcher: Fire
Scorching Ray: Fire
Mind Spike: Psychic
Mind Thrust: Psychic
Phantasmal Force: Psychic
Shadow Blade: Psychic
Snilloc's Snowball Swarm: Cold
Shatter: Thunder

Here we are missing Acid, Lighting, Poison, Force, Necrotic and Radiant (4/10)

3rd level:
Fireball: Fire
Flame Arrows: Fire
Lightning Bolt: Lightning
Melf's Minute Meteors: Fire
Thunder Step: Thunder

No acid, poison, force, psychic, necrotic, radiant (5/10)


4th level:
Blight: Necrotic
Sickening Radiance: Radiant
Vitriolic Sphere: Acid
Wall of Fire: Fire

Missing Lightning, Cold, Poison, Force, Psychic, Thunder (4/10)

5th:
Cloudkill: Poison
Cone of Cold: Cold
Enervation: Necrotic
Immolation: Fire
Synaptic Static: Psychic
Wall of Light: Radiant

Missing Lightning, Force, Psychic, Thunder (6/10)

Now I'll argue that Psychic, Radiant, Necrotic and Force don't have to be every level. They seem more corner case. But I think having the elemental set is worthwhile.

If we assume baseline Sorcerers should have access to Fire, Cold, Acid, Poison, Lightning and Thunder spells of each level:

1st: Have at least 1 of each type.
2nd: Acid, Lighting, Poison needed
3rd: Acid, Poison needed
4th: Lightning, Cold, Poison, Thunder needed
5th: Lightning, Thunder needed

This ignores polychromatic spells like dragon's breath.

I can see two ways to approach this. First, steal stuff from previous editions. Second, come up with ideas for here. I want to avoid doing a "this is a fireball, but does acid damage".

From 3e, here are a bunch of spell ideas:

Lightning: Lighting Blade (summons a blade of lightning that deals damage), mystic lash (summons a whip of lightning that stuns), Ball Lightning (summon balls of lightning that you move around).

Acid: Acid Fog (too much like cloud kill), Acid Storm (rains acid, yum), Greenfire (1 round aoe zone)

Cold: Column of Ice (...), Creeping Cold (turn the target's sweat to ice, increasing damage), Freeze (cold damage, entomb in ice), Frostbite (cold and dex damage), Hailstones (summon and throw hailstones), Heat Drain (deal aoe cold damage, gain temporary HP), Ice Castle (...), Ice Slick (super grease), Icicle (create trap), Wall of Ice (...)

 

[cbwjm]

Acid stream is on the wizard list as well.

I do think that they could do with expanding the elemental spells a bit, primarily so that every player of a draconic sorcerer feels like they have some on-theme options at each spell level no matter which bloodline they've chosen. I don't think that every level requires these spells to be a damaging spell (as in a spell that does nothing but damage) but options similar to some of the 3e options you've mentioned which provide a status effect would be good.

I often look at existing spells and think how they could be altered. I could see something like a ice-based version of hold person which freezes the target in ice requiring a strength save to escape instead of wisdom.

Ice-walking could be an ice themed version of spiderclimb which lets the caster walk on ice and snow as if it was regular ground instead of difficult terrain. That would be a pretty niche spell though, probably not worth it in the long run.

Spells I have made version of:

Frost Orb. A 3rd-level cold-based version of fireball I created dealt 6d6 cold damage and turned its AoE into slick ice making it difficult terrain.

Acid Wave. A 1st-level acid-based version of burning hands dealt less initial damage but had the chance for secondary damage providing higher damage on a failed saving throw. I actually like acid stream better.

Ball Lightning. 5th-level lightning spell. Quite possibly the same spell you've mentioned from 3e. It acts like a lightning based version of melf's minute meteors but with higher damage and the added effect of being a light source

Corrosive Mist. 3rd-level acid spell. Creates an area of mist that deals acid damage.

I also created a couple of spells specifically for draconic sorcerers. Essentially just magic missile and scorching ray but the damage type matches the damage type of your draconic bloodline.

 

[NotAYakk]

Alpha spell:

Lighting Lash - Sorcerer 2
1 Action - 1 minute (c)
SM(a 1 inch length of thread)

A lash of lighting swings out of your hand. Make a melee spell attack on a creature within 15'. If you hit, the creature takes 2d8 lighting damage and must make a strength saving throw or be grappled and restrained. The escape DC is your spell save DC.

On your turn you can either deal 2d8 damage to a restrained creature as a bonus action, or you can release any restrained creatures and make a new attack on a creature within 15' as an action, but not both.

At higher levels: When using a 3rd or higher level slot, the damage increases by 1d8 for every slot level higher than 2.

Greenfire - Sorcerer 2
1 Action - 1 round
VS
10' radius circle within 60'

10' tall green flames erupt from the ground in a 10' radius circle until the end of your next turn. The area is considered difficult terrain, and emits a dim light in a 20' radius. Any creature that begins its turn within the flames or enters them on its turn for the first time takes 2d10 acid damage, constitution save for half.

At higher levels: When using a 3rd or higher level spell slot, the damage increases by 1d10 for each slot level higher than 2.