D&D 5E What Spells Would You De-Nerf? (and how would you change them...)

[Horwath]

Scaling of all damage spells needs to go up.

3 dice per level for single target spells, 2 dice for AoE spells.

I.E.
Scorching ray; 1 ray for 3d6 damage per level,
Fireball, +2d6 per level

 

[Gladius Legis]

To people who want damage spells to auto-scale damage like in previous editions (namely 3e): You do realize that in 3e the DC was fixed, right? There was the Heighten Spell metamagic to increase the DC of a spell in 3e, but that was it. In 5e, it's DCs that scale automatically with level (well, proficiency bonus), so 5e just switched it around. In any event, having both damage AND DC auto-scale doesn't strike me as a good idea.

 

[Gladius Legis]

Power word kill could be upped a bit, although it is also quite ok the way it is.
Maybe it should kill off up to 300hp or up to 500hp but I do not know.

Buffing PWK is a tricky proposition. It's one of those spells that's terrible in the players' hands, but it's cheap as hell when used by enemy mages.

Maybe: 100hp or less = auto kill
101+ hp = deals 100 damage, Charisma save negates damage.

 

[Gladius Legis]

I'd be tempted to remove concentration from stone skin and return it to blocking X number of hits (originally it was attacks, hit or miss but I think reducing damage from actual hits would be better since it is no longer immunity). Maybe something like the following:

Duration: 1 hour or special.
Stone grants resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage. It lasts for the duration or until it has reduced damage from number of attacks equal to 1d4 + 4.

At higher levels. Increase the number of blocked attacks by 1 for each spell slot level above 4th.

This would make it work more or less like the 2e version of the spell which increased the number of absorbed attacks by 1 for every 2 levels of the spellcaster.

I would keep concentration on Stoneskin but I do like all the other changes here.

 

[Retreater]

The concentration requirement would come off quite a few spells.

AoE damage spells such as Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Cone of Cold, etc. would be uncapped at dx (usually d6) per caster level (but you'd have to roll to aim them). With everything in 5e tending to have gobs of h.p. this doesn't seem like a problem.

Fireball would expand to fill the required volume. (this is kind of both a nerf and an un-nerf at the same time)

Save-or-suck - a lot of these would get some duration back before the target would start getting any per-round saves to shrug off. (e.g. Hold Person duration 4 rounds + 1 round / 2 levels, save each round after the 4th round to negate early)

Yes, as it is, saving to end "Save-or-Suck" spells every round makes them essentially worthless. Completely agree with you the duration needs to be extended.

 

[RSIxidor]

I'd consider taking concentration off of Shield of Faith.

I'd change magic missile somewhat. I'm not sure the exact nature of the change but I've never liked that it only gets one dart per spell level. This probably isn't a good idea but yet its in my head. Maybe having the additional darts per spell level by 1d6 instead of 1d4. I'd also bring back the cantrip version like we had in 4E, but that's another story.

 

[Gladius Legis]

Spells that definitely need concentration removed:

Shield of Faith
All Smite spells
Hail of Thorns
Entangling Strike
Lightning Arrow
Flame Arrows
Swift Quiver
Mordenkainen's Sword
Storm of Vengeance

 

[NotAYakk]

Power word kill could be upped a bit, although it is also quite ok the way it is.
Maybe it should kill off up to 300hp or up to 500hp but I do not know.

You say a word of power and pick a target within range.

If they have 100 or fewer more HP than you do, they die. You lose 100 less HP than they had (min 0).

Otherwise, you die, and they lose HP equal to your current HP.

 

[The Crimson Binome]

To people who want damage spells to auto-scale damage like in previous editions (namely 3e): You do realize that in 3e the DC was fixed, right? There was the Heighten Spell metamagic to increase the DC of a spell in 3e, but that was it. In 5e, it's DCs that scale automatically with level (well, proficiency bonus), so 5e just switched it around. In any event, having both damage AND DC auto-scale doesn't strike me as a good idea.

It's not true that lower-level spells are more accurate to make up for their reduced damage in 5E, though. In 3E, the difference in save DC between a level 3 spell and a level 7 spell was often outside the scope of the d20; they were going to fail, regardless.

 

[Gadget]

Well, there are certainly a lot of spells that could be improved in this way, though I probably don't agree with many of the suggestions here returning to the LFQW paradigm. To start with:

True strike - just needs to be Guidance for attacks.
Friends - Needs to be more usable but not overpowered for a cantrip.
Witch Bolt - probably needs to grapple the target.
Detect Evil and Good - need an 'At Higher Levels' clause that expands the range
Illusory Script - probably needs a duration until dispelled.
Goodberry - should probably consume components
Jump - duration should be upped to 10 min and a clause should be added that the extra jump distance provided by the spell does not count towards your movement allotment.
Protection From Evil & Good - Needs to expand the types it protects from. I get that it should not work on the 'evil' town guard, but having it not be effective against the Ancient Wyrm seems weird. Maybe it is effective against everything except humanoid, beast and plant.
Ray of Sickness - should not require a saving throw and an attack roll. Just an attack roll, no saving throw. Resistance to poison and immunity to the poisoned condition would of course apply.
Tenser's floating disk - duration increased to 4 hours. It is a utility spell, no harm in having it last a half day.
Unseen Servant - same.
Barkskin - loose concentration.
Crown of Madness - needs a rewrite so they attack the closest person they can reach, maybe loose concentration.
Find Traps - needs a duration of 10 minutes, maybe at the cost of concentration.
Ray of Enfeeblement - Affects Strength attacks, Strenth ability checks and Strength saving throws.
Bestow Curse - Range 30' (Only spell that is touch yet requires no touch attack), options need to be disadvantage on all attacks (not just against you), extra damage from all attacks (not just from you), etc.
Flame Arrows - loose concentration.
Feign Death - duration needs to be up to 8 hours.
Phantom Steed - duration needs to be up to 8 hours.
Vampiric Touch - loose concentration, needs to be an instantaneous touch attack that deals, say 7d6 damage and you get half in healing (can be delivered via familiar).
Blight - target that fails save falls prone and cannot get up or take reactions until the end of their next turn in addition to the current effects.
Grasping Vine - needs to restrain the target.
Phantasmal Killer - target takes damage before the save to end on each turn.
Stoneskin - loose concentration or the target gets advantage on Con saves as well.
Dispel Evil & Good - needs the full effects of Protection from E & G, plus needs to affect more creature types.
Eneveration - make it a bonus action to maintain every turn.
Immolation - make it target up to four creatures the caster can see in range.
Negative Energy Flood - make it a line effect that can hit more than one creature.
Flesh to Stone - remove concentration. The fail x before succeeding on y mechanic is sufficient.
Investiture Of spells - need to be bonus action to do the special attacks the spells grant.
Tenser's Transformation - loose concentration, add caveat that subject cannot maintain concentration on effects while spell is in operation.
Mordenkanin's Sword - so much needs to be done here.
Prismatic Spray - damage needs to be upped. It's really only good if a target gets hit by multiple rays.
Regeneration - duration needs to be 8 hours, can also be ended early to get the effects of a Greater Restoration.
Ali-Dalzim’s Horrid Wilting - targets that fail save have disadvantage on attacks and ability checks for one minute in addition to damage. Save every round to end effect.
Demiplane - so much, not sure how though.
Power Word ... - for Kill, targets above threshold get 100 physic damage. Other Words just offer an initial save to targets above the threshold.
Timestop - casting time changed to reaction
Weird - same as Phantasmal Killer. Still weak for 9th level spell.