D&D 5E Level 10 Magical Secrets - Lore Bard in Princes of the Apocalypse

[WASDHammer]

I'm currently playing a level 9 Lore Bard /level 1 Divine Soul Sorcerer in a Princes of Apocalypse campaign (with homebrew that will take us to level 20). My party consists of a Vengeance Paladin, a Twilight Cleric, a Dragon Monk, an Artificer/War Mage, and a Scribes Wizard, so we are pretty well balanced in terms of spellcasting breadth.

I took Counterspell & Revivify at level 6 (before the Wizard and Cleric joined)

I am on the cusp of my next magical secrets and am struggling a bit as to what I should take next. I have been a valuable member thus far as a battlefield control/support concentration option (Hypnotic Pattern, Hold Person, Heat Metal, Polymorph) and only recently applied some damage spells to the arsenal (Animate Objects, Synaptic Static).

The Wizard already has things like Wall of Force, Bigby's Hand, and Steel Wind Strike, while the Cleric has Spirit Guardians and Circle of Power.

I enjoy being useful so worry about taking similar spells that are already taken, however, level 10 seems a tad limited in options otherwise, especially as we extend into late tier play.

I currently am thinking the following but, to be honest, they all feel a tad underwhelming:

• Pass Without Trace (but we are more of a "beat down the front door" kind of group)
• Find Greater Steed (but in a dungeon crawl campaign, feels less useful if not outright useless. DM makes it difficult for us to even enter dungeons with mounts so this will no doubt be difficult.)
• Destructive Wave (would require me to get within 30 ft range)
• Telekinesis (on my shortlist, but is it useful in combat relative to Bigby's or just a utility play?)
• Conjure Animals (feels like it scales poorly by mid-tier play).
• Sickening Radiance (in anticipation of Forcecage? but is that too situational?)

Am I thinking about these choices wrong? Are there better options out there that I should consider, even if it means doubling down?

If you were me, PICK TWO.

 

[Seramus]

How about Holy Weapon and Creation? One is a great damage buff that lasts an entire hour. Could give amazing mileage on the Dragon Monk at the very least. Meanwhile, Creation is a tremendously versatile spell that allows you access to a library of shenanigans.

But, I mean, you can't go wrong with MORE Walls of Force. It's just that good.

 

[WASDHammer]

Never used Creation. Will have to take a deeper look at that.

I had considered Wall of Force along with Telekinesis. I supposed with all of the vast spells at the Wizard's and Cleric's disposal, I was trying to have unique flavor of my own. I had been considering even Conjure Woodland Beings, but I know the DM selects the creatures based on the local environment, so not sure if that renders these spells (Woodland Beings, Animals) less useful. Plus I already have Animate Objects so maybe that renders these spells useless too.

 

[Mort]

Since concentration is a big limiting factor, I'd consider doubling up.

Having both spirit guardians AND Circle of Power up for big fights is pretty good. Same with having access to Wall of Force if the wizard is concentrating on something else. So I'd pick between those 3.

 

[TaranTheWanderer]

As a wizard, I liked Telekinesis. And here's why:

As an action, every round, I can grapple an opponent and move them anywhere on the map while staying behind allies.

I didn't use it all the time because of the 60 foot range but, in caves and narrow passages, it was super useful. If you have lots of ranged options, you can pull someone up off the ground and let your allies blast them.

It might be a bit situational though.

Force Wall is so nice in combination with other spells - like Dawn, because you can funnel enemies by surrounding them with a wall and then lay down Dawn.

 

[rgoodbb]

Misty Step and Vortex Warp. Become the chess player of combat tactics. Move you, move allies, and move bad guys. Swap out one for Scatter a little later. Both are useful outside of combat. This is one of my preferred playstyles.