CANTRIP #5|Control Flames: Mechanics, Description, Alternative Uses, Potential Combos (DnD 5E Spell)

[@ChancesSpellbook]

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[@mikewazowski8075]

An interesting combination I can see with this cantrip comes from acquiring it on a Gloom Stalker Ranger, probably by the Druidic Warrior fighting style. Using this cantrip you could extinguish or dim the light of flames near your foes so you can stroll right on up to them invisibly to take full advantage of Umbral Sight. Plus, the image of a group of bandits sitting around a bonfire, having the flame right in front of them snuffed out, and then dispatched one by one by an enemy they can't even see is just very cool to me.

[@Florian0799]

If your Gloomstalker is a Wood Elf i would also suggest taking wood elf magic into consideration to get the cantrip. Since that also gives you 2 very handy spells on top of it.

[@KaitouKaiju]

I took this as a fire genasi wildfire druid. Now I can light my pipe of smoke monsters with produce flame then commit no-touch arson while blowing clouds shaped like wildcats

[@mr.potato_cool437]

A combo i thoght of called dragon blade: you get a dagger put a flame on it then shape it into anything id shape it into a dragon then use gust to make sure it bws extra speed but you need to be cloee to the target then when it hits the person you can shape the flame freely to do even more damage (note: i never played dnd but i made a character and learning the rules sp sorry if this is dum or off)

[@Living_Life242]

It seems like a great spell for both urban scouts sneaking about buildings at night and psychopaths who want to make a home burn down by having a lit candle set the nearby furniture on fire. For everyone else…? Not so much. It’s actually kinda scary to imagine an arsonist with this cantrip going around, skulking from 60 feet away and with a silent gesture causing a guard’s torch (who may not even be able to see them!) to light the nearby building or looking through a window to cause the hearth to spread across the home. Would investigators even suspect magic was at play and not an accident? At least before the third building caught flame in the same week?

[@themalcontent100]

Combine bonfire plus control flames to double the area. And also combine with grease and smoke powder to create a flash fire. You can also use it in conjunction with grease to only hurt the enemy.

[@PicoriElder]

While this will vary from table to table, unfortunately RAW this neither of these ideas work. The biggest draw back about trying to do cool things with Control Flames is that it does specify non-magical flames. So you can't use it with Create Bonfire, and the Grease spell is not flammable. While the argument for grease is there, it does not say that the grease spell is flammable, and when comparing it to a spell like Web that DOES specify that its flammable, it doesn't bode too well. But again it does vary from table to table, and at my table I would probably allow it, but RAW it doesn't work. I had the same idea with a Summer Eladrin trying to expand the range of fire spells and abilities and unfortunately just doesn't work.

[@themalcontent100]

@@PicoriElder being non-magical fire it would create smoke. That is dangerous and could be a way to clean out a room.

[@dumbghost3109]

remember, this spell, shape water, and mold earth do not specify a single source of flame. you are allowed to cast this cantrip on all flames within range that you can see so long as they all collectively fit within a 5ft square.

[@Wrathnicangel104]

I used with my Sorceror tiefling to circle or twirl around the big Hobgoblin leader so that if he moved he would take damage while we deal with his goblin and then dm tells me to roll D4 damage when ever he failed a dex save. It was hard to come up with a use for it. Sadly I couldn’t find much use after that cause Curse of Strahd didn’t let me find much use for it. Sadly I set a house on fire and couldn’t have time to put it out when being attacked by Vampres and none of my friends told my character told mine about an old man hiding in the under his bed and made my character lawful good and that was an unfortunate situation since the old man died and the flame got worse to where the cantrip couldn’t put it out anyway and the old man screamed and died. I knew but my character did not but I was trying to put it out anyway even though it helped kill the vamps faster. I still feel bad about that incident. Thats also what I get for not having ice or water spells either.

[@zandererasmus1340]

You can let it look if there is a treasure chest in the fire. A creede enemy will run in the fire

[@Florian0799]

I am picking a new cantrip soon. So my question is would that be worthwhile for divination such as flame reading as well .o.?

[@mikewazowski8075]

I think that depends on how legitimate you want your flame readings to be. Using control flame to get a reading for divination, to me, seems like something a fake diviner would use to keep up their act for a crowd, since you would have total control of the flames to get exactly what you want from them. Some other ways to get a flame to read without making your own readings manually could be something like Produce Flame, Firebolt, or Prestidigitation to start the fire.

[@Florian0799]

@@mikewazowski8075 Hmm i guess i stick to augury than but might be something to commune back when the flames speak perhaps.

[@geoxaga6507]

Combine with minor illusion to create flame creatures to make singing flame wolves during a concert. Or use the color change in a rapid red and blue flash that can give them seizures.

[@russellharrell2747]

I don’t think changing a flame’s color to black would cause it to not cast light, especially since this cantrip already states it can already change the lighting as a separate feature.

[@xiongray]

Logically... if you turn the flames green, green lighting is given off. If you turn the flames black... black light is given off. Not blacklight but black light. Blacklight is ultraviolet which... you could potentially do. Although one could argue, black, white, grey are not colors at all but shades. But if you slide the color scale, you'll reach a white-black scale. Also, changing color couldn't only be visual, it means you're changing the intensity of the fire by the energies it emits. Colors are no joke.

[@nproperpackage7602]

I has a friend that had control flame and created bonfire. He'd create the bonfire then would use control flame. To move the bonfire. When the target would move out of it on his next turn.

[@redsrp2348]

But you can just cast bonfire again to move it???

[@xaviermcaleer3428]

What about using 'control flame' to extend the range of a dragon born's fire breath?

[@keyn5732]

Can you cover Tenser's Transformation?

[@isaackarr6576]

You do realise this works in tandem with create bonfire if you have more than one castor. And honestly because of power creep I would double up some cantrips ao add them to prepaired spells.

[@xiongray]

Isn't Create Bonfire fire magical?

[@clint_the_wolf8313]

Could you use this to buff the range of a fireball spell or bolt or some other fire based spell. like held action combo?

[@themadcow8191]

The cantrip specifies that it works on non-magical flames only, so I'd guess fire spells would be off-limits. As soon as you've USED a spell to set fire to something, though, I would argue the fire is now non-magical, feeding on oxidizable fuel like any other fire, and can be controlled.

[@viridityone3106]

So what your telling me is that I can use this, to turn an enemy's touch black ,blinding them,while spreading the flame, setting them on fire, in one turn?

[@connorp3030]

no you only affect the flames one way per action You can three active at a time

[@xiongray]

You can with Metamagic Quickened Spell.

[@spoonman9584]

mold earth = create a cloud of dust. control flames = explosion.

[@danielderamus9573]

Could you use a held action with this cantrip to extinguish a fireball (in your square only) or even dragons fire breath attack (again your square only)? Also I uses the animate flame feature to create a movie in a bonfire to cheer up a depressed NPC.

[@KaitouKaiju]

No, those are magical flames. This only works on non-magical flames.

[@xiongray]

Not with control flames. Shape water however could do you wonders. Resistance to fire with a body of water.

[@Florian0799]

Why only have pseudo dragons flying around the BBEG. How about an avatar of Tiamat and ancient dragons .w.

[@erinkarp6317]

Poor Bard...

[@CommanderS579]

Yes, it has some good range. But you can only control existing flames. Aspects of igniting something is VERY situational since you need the flame you are working with to be close enough (5ft) and it has to have fuel in range to move too. Only if someone is literally standing next to or holding a torch, and wearing some sort of flammable fuel. Like robes, but not armor. Yes, presdedigitation only has a 10ft range. But this is super situational. I’m not really sold. I do like your perspective on the actor and using pyrotechnic themes for performance.

[@KaitouKaiju]

I took this cantrip for a fire genasi character, who gets produce flame for free. So it's easy enough to become an arsonist

[@CommanderS579]

@@KaitouKaiju That is really cool! Or Hot? Technically produce flame is a magical flame, thus control flame wouldn't work on it. That being said, I would be more inclined to allow it as a DM because its your own flames and due to your race it makes sense.

[@KaitouKaiju]

@@CommanderS579 Produce flame could be used to light other things, which then would be nonmagical fire since it's now consuming a fuel source. There's a lot of highly flammable plants - cattails, tumbleweed, hay, etc. My intent was to make the character a chronic smoker - forest fires fitting the theme of the character. And yeah, there's always the lenient DM who'd allow it without the technicalities

[@CommanderS579]

@@KaitouKaiju Now I gotta ask, did you do circle of wildfire druid? Because that would be amazing!

[@KaitouKaiju]

@@CommanderS579 Yup We're doing tomb of annihilation. My last character died just before the holidays so I'll be running this one in the next session