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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Bacon Bits" data-source="post: 6877049" data-attributes="member: 6777737">As I've said elsewhere, the best thing about ADHW is the fact that it deals necrotic damage.  That makes it pretty good against fiends, celestials, and elementals, which often resist other damage types but rarely resist necrotic.The area of effect is not particularly large.  The range is not particularly far.  The damage is not particularly high.  The only things the spell really does well is: 1) target plants and water elementals (flavor more than anything; this is so narrow as to be useless), and 2) avoid constructs and undead (many of whom are already immune to necrotic damage).  Now, how often is that going to be of use to a PC?  Not that often.  In almost every instance, undead and constructs will be opponents, not allies.  That makes it fairly unimpressive.This is a fine spell for a Necromancer with an army of undead.  Which is to say, this is a fine spell for NPCs.  It's a little over leveled -- cloudkill could probably do an equal job in most cases -- so outside of unusual campaigns where the DM allows PC to run about with armies of undead or constructs I'd peg it as mediocre or very special purpose.In previous editions, ADHW was great because you pick whatever targets you wanted, it had a huge range, a huge area, and it dealt nonelemental damage.  Now it doesn't do any of that.  It's closer in power to chain lightning, firestorm, and circle of death.  In a perfect situation it might be as powerful as other 8th level spells, but if sunburst is what an 8th level spell is supposed to do (12d6 (42) radiant + blind for 1 minute + dispel darkness) or incendiary cloud (a cloudkill that deals 10d8 fire damage each round for up to 10 rounds), then I don't see what this spell actually offers a PC outside of fairly narrow scenarios.Still, it's not the only instance of wonky spells.Finger of death, a 7th level spell, has a range of 60 feet, targets a single creature. It deals 7d8+30 (61.5) necrotic damage with a Con save for half.  There is no spell level scaling.  If the target is a humanoid and is killed by the spell (n.b., it doesn't say reduced to 0 hp, it says killed) it rises as a zombie under your control.Disintegrate, a 6th level spell, has a range of 60 feet, targets a single creature, object, or creation of magical force.  On a hit, up to a 10 foot cube is disintegrated, a magical force creation is destroyed, and a creature takes 10d6 + 40 (75) force damage (Dex save <s>for half</s> negates).  A creature reduced to 0 hp disintegrates (sans magic items) and can only be restored with a wish or true resurrection spell.  For each level about 6th, the spell deals an additional 3d6 (10.5) damage.Disintegrate is a better damage type, more versatile, higher damage, lower level, a generally better save ability and scales very well.  Finger of death lets you farm for CR 1/4 creatures and deals damage on a successful save.</blockquote>

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