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

[tetrasodium]

Every Single Pet (summoning or animating) Spell gets a specific stat block, a limited list of actions, and a hard cap of one thing at a time. Ala the Battlesmith (and the UA class Variants Ranger)

yes, the familiars in 5e are a big mes, not having any meaningful AoO rules doesn't hep matters either

 

[toucanbuzz]

And rain? (otherwise, what's the point?)

It'd stop rain. Back to the original form is what I'm suggesting:

• Constant comfortable temperature
• Protection from elements, such as rain, dust, and sandstorms
• Withstands anything up to hurricane force winds (a gale per Control Weather)
• Internal lighting
• Opaque outside, clear looking out
• No protection from objects passing in and out
• Anyone can freely enter/leave but caster (ends spell)

 

[toucanbuzz]

I also see guidance and resistance have problems with them being cantrips and being used all the time. Maybe more of a nuisance when the player tells me every minute he is casting one of these.

Guidance, forgot that one. It's not that it's breaking my game, it's just that it's breaking my immersion. I've posted on this before, comparing it (as a touch spell) to the football coach giving his players a pat on the ass before they go win the big game. Except, it happens ALL the time. On everything. But I feel bad if I ask the player to tone it down a bit. After all, it lets her cleric contribute.

 

[tetrasodium]

It'd stop rain. Back to the original form is what I'm suggesting:

• Constant comfortable temperature
• Protection from elements, such as rain, dust, and sandstorms
• Withstands anything up to hurricane force winds (a gale per Control Weather)
• Internal lighting
• Opaque outside, clear looking out
• No protection from objects passing in and out
• Anyone can freely enter/leave but caster (ends spell)

for what it's worth & since the old one was 75mph, "hurricane force winds" is a misleading statement for most people. It's not until you get to cat 3-5 that the sustained winds are especially problematic. cat1 starts at sustained 74mph with gusts up to 95mph & here in florida cat1 usually means "your still going to work & the patio furniture is often still outside". 75mph wind gusts. are common even outside of a hurricane. It's also too high

A better wording might be "severe storm winds & gusts" or something.

 

[Lanefan]

It'd stop rain. Back to the original form is what I'm suggesting:

• Constant comfortable temperature
• Protection from elements, such as rain, dust, and sandstorms
• Withstands anything up to hurricane force winds (a gale per Control Weather)
• Internal lighting
• Opaque outside, clear looking out
• No protection from objects passing in and out
• Anyone can freely enter/leave but caster (ends spell)

The problem with that - and it's a problem with the as-written 1e version also - is the serious inconsistency between bullet-points 2 and 6. Rain, dust, and sandstorms can't get in but "objects" can; yet what are raindrops and sand grains (and snowflakes, and hailstones) if not objects.

One could put a size limit e.g. anything with a largest dimension of less than half an inch (or a quarter inch, whatever size makes sense) cannot pass through unless carried by a living being; anything larger can and will pass through freely. This would mean the Hut won't protect against large hail or falling tree branches, but so be it; and accumulated snow or ice would eventually fall through.

For the wind, best to put an actual numerical windspeed limit. Hurricane would be 75 mph. A gale is 32 mph; which is quite a difference. Also should add a ruling on how it interacts with the Gust of Wind spell (I specifically allow GoW to take a Hut down, it's a vulnerability of the hut).

 

[Olrox17]

Healing Spirit, pass without trace and leomund’s hut were already mentioned, so I won’t go over them again.

Animate Objects : insane damage when the caster uses tiny objects. Also, the fact that tiny objects are by far the strongest option, seem counterintuitive. You can always carry those objects around with no effort, so you would expect the larger objects, that you cannot carry around, to be the best, but no.

Forcecage: it doesn’t get much notice because it’s 7th level and most people never see it used, but this spell is crazy. You trap anything that you can fit in a 20 feet cube, for 1 hour, NO CONCENTRATION, NO SAVE. Cannot be dispelled. If, and only if, you have teleportation abilities you can try to escape.

 

[werecorpse]

Forgot about this one! I rule that the hut keeps you safe but that you can't attack anything outside of it. There's basically an "inertial barrier" that stops arrows and other missiles just like spells from inside the sphere. So shoot an arrow from the inside and it will just fall once it leaves the hut.

Supposedly that was the intent of the spell, protection for those inside, unable to attack anyone outside.

I don’t think that was the original intent of the spell. In those days you couldn’t relearn your magic user or illusionist spells unless in a comfortable environment without distractions. This meant that the DM could say you can’t do it while in the wilderness or in a dungeon. The original intent of the spell was just to create this environment.

My change is to remove the force field effect. It is cast as a ritual so takes no resources so in my games it is just a comfortable camouflage tent. If my players use it they can often avoid encounters in dangerous areas.

Re heat metal I require the caster to be within 60’ and able to see the item when they use their bonus action to heat it up; PLUS I say that disadvantage only applies if you cast it on a weapon & they choose to keep holding it.

I don’t allow healing spirit (or shadowblade for that matter) it is absurdly overpowered compared to other healing spells. 10d6 healing in 1 minute for a 2nd level spell slot - the healing cleric weeps. In fact most of xanathars spells I am not a fan of

Animate Object is bad as well but as I play with 6-8 players I’ve told them i don’t allow summon monster spells as it slows things down too much and this fits that category.

Oops forgot forcecage. I have reduced the duration on this spell to 1minute (10 minutes of cast at 8th and 1 hour if cast at 9th). I allow escape by getting through the bars if you make them that way (gaseous form etc) and if you attack a creature through the bars it gets 1/2 or 3/4 cover.

 

[tetrasodium]

The problem with that - and it's a problem with the as-written 1e version also - is the serious inconsistency between bullet-points 2 and 6. Rain, dust, and sandstorms can't get in but "objects" can; yet what are raindrops and sand grains (and snowflakes, and hailstones) if not objects.

One could put a size limit e.g. anything with a largest dimension of less than half an inch (or a quarter inch, whatever size makes sense) cannot pass through unless carried by a living being; anything larger can and will pass through freely. This would mean the Hut won't protect against large hail or falling tree branches, but so be it; and accumulated snow or ice would eventually fall through.

For the wind, best to put an actual numerical windspeed limit. Hurricane would be 75 mph. A gale is 32 mph; which is quite a difference. Also should add a ruling on how it interacts with the Gust of Wind spell (I specifically allow GoW to take a Hut down, it's a vulnerability of the hut).

That's part of why I hate the "just classify things as something other than creature object or spell" solutions often put forward. On 2 elements often refers to "generic weather" but in d&d it also means elemental damage types so a wording like "minor incliment weather but limited protection from extreme weather" would cover it. On 6 "No protection from objects [capable of severely damaging a tent] from passing in and out" would cover it.

 

[Oofta]

I don’t think that was the original intent of the spell. In those days you couldn’t relearn your magic user or illusionist spells unless in a comfortable environment without distractions. This meant that the DM could say you can’t do it while in the wilderness or in a dungeon. The original intent of the spell was just to create this environment.

I was referencing the 5E version of Tiny Hut, not previous editions. In any case I think it's fine as a compromise, I only find the spell problematic only if people can shoot out of the hut. I also rule that it doesn't have a floor.

 

[Gladius Legis]

Agree with nerfing Healing Spirit and Tiny Hut, so won't get into that.

Spiritual Weapon really ought to have a concentration requirement.