Divination Magic in 5e Dungeons & Dragons

Today we gaze into our crystal ball to give you secret knowledge of the DIVINATION magic school! See our tips to use these undderrated spells! Don't forget to subscribe, comment & share. New episodes every Wednesday.
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[@PapaBear_Gaming]

There's so much I want divination to do, it's one of the more interesting schools of magic along with transmutation because of their open endedness, their creative potential. But so long as they are hard lined to have linear results and a binary success failure system they will be kneecapped for potential. This makes me very sad.

[@sheatanner9935]

What was the Eleminster spell guidebook called again?

[@orlandogvazquez-crespo6809]

one intersting thing that wasnt really covered, where exactly does this information COME from?

[@cameronf5893]

Pruitt! Where did you get that awesome Jason and the Argonauts shirt!?

[@LokNWykLeer]

I knew this was coming.

[@mr.flibble3190]

I knew someone was going to make that joke.

[@4ltimit1]

"I scry the villain." "He is on the can." An hour later, "I scry again." "Still on the can." (that's a strong illusion)

[@paulcoy9060]

Who are you scrying, Lord Manderly ?

[@4ltimit1]

Sorry, I haven't read that far yet. I'm working on it.

[@BlitzkriegBryce]

Villain casts Taco Bell

[@AllThingsFascinate]

@@BlitzkriegBryce alright, here, take your "you won the internet for the day" award

[@Mystakaphoros]

I like the Diviner ability that allows you to pre-roll some dice and use them when you see fit. I feel like that's a cool way to fit "predicting the future" into the actual mechanics of the game.

[@yonatanbeer3475]

Right? It lets you give an enemy attack a low number and go " I knew you were going to do that" or give yourself a high number and go "I know the outcome of every possible angle of attack, and I am sure that this one will work.

[@Mystakaphoros]

Exactly!

[@scaratylobsidian8830]

@@yonatanbeer3475 That makes it sound very anime.

[@yonatanbeer3475]

@@scaratylobsidian8830 it is very anime. all "heh, you think you can hit me with THAT?", and such

[@DetectiveBarricade]

@@yonatanbeer3475 I half expect someone to go Psycho Mantis with it. "I can read you like an open book!"

[@williamwalton9154]

As a DM just tell the players that use of a Div spell has a large likelihood of causing a loading screen.

[@IHateNumbersOnNames]

"The world goes absolutely black for a few seconds, and before you realize your vision is filled with smoke. A giant figurine appears, slowly shifting into focus, and beneath it, a quotation: "Horses in Skyrim are a lot tougher than their Cyrodillian counterparts, but also a lot slower" Suddenly, the vision is gone."

[@DamascoGamer]

IHateNumbersOnNames Legendary

[@HollowShard]

Flawless idea, causing 0 issues in the coherency of any plot you may or may not have setup.

[@DamascoGamer]

@@HollowShard r/whoosh

[@darkqueenfenrisulfr]

I like wizards that go mad for knowing the future, not because the knowledge itself but because the more they peer into the future the more they forget the past

[@pit0fdespair248]

If you peer too far into the future you may even forget the present

[@osmium6832]

I think ever since The Last Jedi, nerds are allowed to quote the prequels. "Master Yoda says I should be mindful of the future." "Yes, but not at the expense of the present."

[@JonArrrg]

"The spell just let's you ask the question, the answers arrive in their own time." my eyes rolled so far back they almost fell out of my head. I've never had a problem winging it in response to a divination spell. Yes, it would be nice to know ahead of time, but the players are making decisions in game with the information they have in that moment and can't always predict what divination spells they plan to cast next session. If your player casts a divination spell, getting back to them later may be too late, at least in my campaign it might be. The appropriate time to give the information to your player is when they cast the spell, especially when the duration is listed as instantaneous, otherwise you are unfairly handicapping their class/build.

[@greatswordmedia9358]

Yes same! I know this is a necro but it kind of shocked me how selfish the dm in this video is treating divination spells. Yes, you’ve created the world, but the story belongs to the party. The player invests heavily into learning, preparing and using these spells instead of other spells at the same level. Don’t water down divination just because it’s inconvenient for you as DM.

[@zacharyhiland300]

Since Comprehend Languages tells you the literal meaning of what is said or written, it seems as if cyphers would be a way to still require the kind of interaction you were talking about. You can even have the cypher in some unknown language, so that the Comprehend Languages is a necessary step that lets the Diviner feel important, but then the party has to figure out what is meant by whatever psychotic ramblings are revealed that are actually just a way to further conceal what was meant, in a world where the bad guy is well aware that spells like Comprehend Languages exist.

[@pierre-marcmazerolle9966]

In my current game I described Comprehend Languages as a spell that lets you pull knowledge from a pool of languages held in a meta-dimension. Each time Comprehend Languages is cast, the spell also digs in the caster's mind for new words, lingos ect. This mean that some dead empires have languages so old that the precede the creation of the spell. Comprehend Languages is also of no help for cyphers, codes or brand new street speak. It makes Thieves Cant semi-understandable since some rogues have access to the spell.

[@jand.4737]

thieves cant uses more metaphorical speech than actual new language. You just say something, that actually delivers another message to those who know thieves cant.

[@Cambreath]

Poetic allusions, and allusions to songs and tales and artwork is also a good way around this - bury a meaning in a text and see if the players figure it out.

[@mr.flibble3190]

"Since Comprehend Languages tells you the literal meaning of what is said or written, it seems as if cyphers would be a way to still require the kind of interaction you were talking about." In one of my games, I gave the players a combination lock that depended on solving a Latin square puzzle - nine tiles, three with each of three symbols, that needed to be placed on a 3x3 grid with no repetitions on any horizontal or vertical row. One of the characters was a diviner, and I anticipated her player casting Comprehend Languages on the symbols, and indeed she did. The symbols were three of the giant runes from "Storm King's Thunder," so I presented the player with a literal translation of the three ideographs in the array - "Death, Life, Journey." There was no grammar and no real message there - the tiles really only needed to be arranged in a certain order - but it looked like it might be a riddle. The players did solve the puzzle, but that red herring pulled them off track for a couple of minutes. So, it takes some effort, but Comprehend Languages can be bypassed.

[@mr.flibble3190]

"thieves cant uses more metaphorical speech than actual new language. You just say something, that actually delivers another message to those who know thieves cant." Depending on how you interpret Druidic, you might do the same. I could imagine doing that with Infernal, too - maybe that's why it's not such a great idea to make deals with devils.

[@RobKinneySouthpaw]

I hated when as players we would put a couple hours into secret meetings, preparations, subterfuge, and the DM villain would always be able to scry us, know where our base was, when we were coming, etc. We ended up giving up on plans and basically getting in by helping the laundry lady with her pack.

[@ethanbeck5892]

Really easy to get around scrying.

[@Nurk0m0rath]

This is where spells like Mind Blank, Private Sanctum, Telepathic Bond, and even Message can come in handy. Or even magical objects like the amulet of proof against detection (which blocks scrying). Private Sanctum can prevent people from scrying into the space or even overhearing a conversation from outside it, Mind Blank can prevent someone from having his mind read, and spells like Telepathic Bond and Message can remove audible components, forcing someone to read your mind to learn your plans. In an adventure where you learn the villain is scrying on you, if you don't have the ability within the party to sequester yourselves from his sight, you can have a side quest to find someone or something that can.

[@jamessimmons9998]

Foresight can be cast on any willing creature, not just self. I think the more common use for it is for the caster to put in on the fighter in order to enable badass mode during some important battle.

[@kaleidoslug7777]

"Instant-Kill Mode ENGAGED"

[@364dragonrider]

And then vecna paralyzes the whole party and disintegrates the rogue.

[@jacobschwier5368]

364dragonrider That was a great episode.

[@waaurufu]

In my personal opinion, if you have a diviner in your party both DM and player need to work together, divination school is the detective school, and nothing is stopping you from answering with more mysteries. That ancient tome can lead them to a dangerous ancient tomb, or identify reveals this item has a powerful curse beyond the scope of the caster's capabilities. Give some answers, and reveal more mysteries, that is what I want when I play my detective diviner.

[@finnianquail8881]

URGH! My players are doing something. Better fuck it up teehee!

[@waaurufu]

+Finnian Quail What does that have to do with my comment?

[@kurtoogle4576]

I totally agree that PC divination needs DM buy-in and has great potential for thematic development. I've seen DM's hand off prediction story development to players, to player groups, and to random tables as well. Hero point investment and the personality traits can make things pretty interesting too.

[@waaurufu]

Kurt Terfloth Thank you for wording it better than I initially did, divination doesn't have to be a plot killer, it can be the exact opposite in the form of another avenue of plot development.

[@dungeonmaster3198]

The tea leaves have fortold that Jim and Pru shall dominate the YouTubians.

[@FulcanMal]

I guess I've been forged in the fires of Mage the Awakening. Your players start out collectively being able to read minds, see across time and spice, summon and speak with ghosts, see magical energies, see physical energy, and so much more. What I've learned from running these games is how to make your mysteries work even when your players have access to so much information. It's all about understanding the limits of the power being used, and structuring your challenges with that in mind. Comprehend languages is a perfect example. Let the power be useful and give valuable information, but not information that solves the problem for the players. Such as a journal that reveals the location of a treasure vault, and contains the riddle that must be solved to enter (one that the author of the journal could never solve). In this way, the divination spell has granted useful information, but it can't solve the riddle for the player. Dealing with divination magic of any kind in your game is all about approaching it with this mindset. Don't try to defeat it, because that's boring. Just make sure you understand what it can't do.

[@inkblotCrisis]

I FORESAW IT, I watched the video before the notification arrived! Oh wait...it's just KZbin being KZbin. Another great episode either way!

[@eragontherider123]

@6:19 The best way to keep those adventures is to use language where the context clues could only be known by someone who actually knows the language and can't be understood literally. e.x. Ya te cargo el payaso (spanish) in english says The clown has already picked you up but means you are doomed. So you can give the party some advantages in knowledge of locations, times or other details but you can hide others behind idioms.

[@davidlewis5312]

intellectual material contains far fewer idioms than dialogue context or narrative prose.

[@PandorasFolly]

Heard a funny story. Party used a low level divination spell, somesort of question dead, which allowed only Yes/no answers. So they drew a line on a map and asked if the mcguffin was located in the world on this side of the map. Then did it again and again untill they knew exactly which dang floor of which building it was located in.

[@Talarue]

Quickest way to to drive your DM to insanity. Spring divination on them without warning at the oddest possible times. Please do not do this, however funny the thought of their mental anguish is.

[@graventhered]

Most GMs will note that the players now have divination magic But yes, warn your gm that you plan to use it, it's much easier to give good answers

[@hughsmith7504]

I would love to see a GM pull a Darmok with comprehend language: You translate thier speach litterly, but it has no context: " Jaffa, his back broke" " Timba, his arms wide, his eyes wide" "Skaka, when the walls fell" would be what the party hears, but what is meant was " I need to drink a healing potion" " I have one for you, but I don't know were it is" "Well shit!"

[@Nurk0m0rath]

Or you could use rhyme-slang. In certain parts of England, for example, a telephone would be called a "Dog and Bone".

[@unicyclepeon]

I upvoted, good video, but I have the opposite view on Divination spells. I like the binary ones *because* they are binary. I usually don't find the whole "simple need to know what a magic item is spins into a whole adventure" to be satisfying. If the item is special for plot reasons, reveal *most* of the info and hide the rest. It makes the spell useful but adds an intriguing level of uncertainty; but non-plot items can just be identified. Same for communication and several other things. I take these spells because I don't really enjoy the run-around. If the GM really needs an ancient language fragment to remain mysterious, just tell the diviner that the spell tried to activate but that it couldnt. Let the player keep the spell slot and gain a sense of curiosity that the spell didnt work in this one case; in other cases, let the spell be the tedium-shortener that it is suppsed to be. In the case of weal or woe, convey the most likely result; when that doesnt work out, it adds that sense of mystery and uncertainty, without making the spell useless. Finally for the big backstory spells, I almost never cast them for that purpose, so I would disappoint a GM who planned to info dump just because I took Legend Lore. :) Anyway, good video. Cheers !!

[@draxthemsklonst]

That's an interesting way to do the divination thing...would love to have a DM take your angle. Also, sometimes, the other way Web DM described, would be another way to go. Can I like both, just for different campaigns? One way is good for certain types of campaign and another for other campaigns...

[@stephenpatterson2860]

I created a Divination Wizard the other day for a one-shot; he was a shaman from a barbarian tribe who was cast out for foretelling doom on his tribe. He does his divination via reading entrails, casting knucklebones (which are also his "spell book"), etc, and other spells he casts using a voodoo doll. For example, when punching using Bigby's hand, he does an incantation over the doll and punches it with his fist.

[@mbourke7999]

I've been super excited for this vid for a while! Been trying to plan for a campaign with a player being a diviner and this will definitely help. Love the work guys

[@WebDM]

Thank you Fancy Man!

[@stormRed]

Not having divination magic in your party: "Go on, keep your secrets then"

[@TheRaviotar]

These magic school videos are awesome! Abjuration next, please? I really like the idea of a Lawful-aligned buzzkill Abjurer who sees magic they don't agree with, says "no, that's wrong!" and shuts it down with a Counterspell or something.

[@Licjr]

A bladesinger that picks up Mobility would be nasty with foresight. They could weave in and out if an enemy does get in melee they're attacking at disadvantage

[@22atoo]

"you have reached the hall of concordance. please hold"

[@crodd92]

31:15 I love the dice idea lol.

[@Philisophicles]

This HAS to exist! It HAS to!

[@therocketboost]

Answer for how to counter the universal translator spell... "DARMOK and JALAD. At TANAGRA!"

[@TheIceman101418]

Good video guys. I'm working on cleaning up the spell schools and getting rid of the oddballs in every school, so these vids definitely help

[@cmdn8230]

Great video. Needed this for my diviner in making. Thanks guys and keep up the great work!

[@baltsosser]

Divination used to gain knowledge could be fantastic fun. Take the play MacBeth for example. The king is told he will remain in power until the forest comes alive and attacks him. He assumes that means never since trees can't attack. What the witches meant to say was Men dressed like trees would come from the forest and attack him. Since the truths we cling to depend on a certain point of view however, they did tell him truly what the future held, if only from a certain point of view. The way a party plays that with the information given would be fun.

[@SuperCaleb283]

I'd love to see them shortly tackle Fate, I feel like it could be so interesting to watch Jim Davis be able to handle the game's magic exactly as he wants to.

[@andrewknorpp9415]

Yay! I was beginning to feel the pressure build yesterday. I didn’t know what I could expect anymore.

[@poab]

I like the idea of Divination wizards feeding their master their Portents changing everything that happens around him in real time. You would appear to be like the luck girl in Deadpool 2.

[@mrvodou9413]

been waiting on this for my campaign, thank yall!

[@mordiveer5957]

Came to expand my knowledge of Divination and left knowing i need to expand my world for divination. Excellent as always.

[@placidas-esse4127]

Awesome. I'd love to see transmutation next.

[@Goblinfoo]

Something I plan to use in a campaign where knowledge of the planes is suppressed is to have spells like Comprehend Language be created with intentional gaps so you need a Patron, find the original spell or to do research yourself in order to create the perfected spell in order to keep some of the mystery and create new ones that hint at the greater conspiracy.

[@nessesaryschoolthing]

"I don't like prophesies that are set in stone concrete because players should be able to change the outcomes." I would make an exception: there are things out of the players control. Anything on a planetary level, like an eclipse or a meteor, an act of god like an imminent earthquake, really any new factor in play that doesn't depend what is already established. It doesn't take away player agency if they can't prevent it, in fact it gives them more if they can prepare for it.

[@spot6532]

3 words: Divination Wizard Spy

[@ButzPunk]

I had one of my players cast Augury to see what would happen if the two rogues made a brazen daylight robbery of one of the wealthiest lords in town. I said "Weal and Woe", because I had no idea what would happen... The burglary itself went great and the two rogues made a huge amount of money... but, it eventually lead the party into a fight in which they murdered 4 guards, the lord himself, and an innocent servant. The rest of the lord's staff fled into the streets yelling "murder! Murder!" and the party had to immediately flee the town as criminals (after spending the previous 7 sessions building goodwill, helping the townspeople out).

[@arcticwulf5796]

I had a feeling the episode would be coming and lo and behold here it is. Thanks!

[@WebDM]

We knew you knew that.

[@gauss238]

Could you do an episode where you go through your techniques as a DM on how to dispense information to the players and how to get feedback on the fly while everyone is still in character?

[@merlin3226]

Jolly Rancher dice... Pruitt, you're a genius! I'd buy those in a heartbeat!

[@snevkreb14]

The party in a campaign I'm partially DM'ing has a lot of linkage with Conjuration and Divination magic. One of my players has come into the world through unkown sudden transportation, and doesn't know if it was transdimensional or monoplanar teleportation. One other player is a Divination school wizard. This series is awesome. In the Conjuration video you went into dept of Conjuration side effects, which was exactly what I was looking for. Giving some arcane insight into conjurational mishaps and such will be a great tool in giving realism to the world.

[@caseycoker1051]

There's a system in an RPG called Blade in the dark that's intended to simulate having planned ahead for a heist being pulled. Basically when a player is in a situation they can call for a flashback and explain how they already prepared for that in advance. I could see a divination type mechanic working kind of like this where occassionally a player could spend a resource to say they foresaw an event and have already prepared for it.

[@hewhoscratchedthechaiselon6757]

Cast True Strike before battle to get advantage on your first hit.

[@DKjazzguitar]

You could also cast Guidance to get a d4 bonus on your initiative check. You can't do both, though. Concentration. :(

[@jand.4737]

surprise your enemy to get advantage without alarming him by casting a spell. Also to avoid the shield spell

[@theescottiep]

Good discussion! Thanks guys!

[@johnathangrishaw3096]

I kinda like the idea of Contact other Plane being something like asking Bob to find out stuff in Dresden Files. you call up the god, the god sends out his angels, or demons, or something like that, and forty eight hours later you get what ever they found out

[@ericm.whited9264]

another amazing video as usual

[@Lycaon1765]

I mean, just because you know all the secrets that doesn't mean the campaign is over. You can still DO stuff with information. That ancient tome tells you about some prophecy, evil being in an area, mysterious illness that plagued an ancient civilization, etc and now your players want to investigate. Your players now have that info, then they must react to it.

[@superbum4]

thank you for doing this one, i needed it

[@Incrediblefatslug]

I'm Planning to multiclass an aspiring young divination fighter in an episodic d&d series. This has been a really helpful guide.

[@DeaconCobbanBossaru9000]

I once had a DM make true strike not suck by changing the spell entirely. He made it where if you cast it on a creature, you learned all of their resistances, immunities, an vulnerabilities. (keep in mind this was before xanathar's came out so we didn't have that one ranger ability)

[@zaneearldufour]

Oh my god this timing is so perfect for me. My previous character just died and I’m planning on playig a divination wizard!!!! Aaah this is awesome!!!

[@prestonlawson1219]

My personal solution to comprehend languages is a very simple one, which I came to after really thinking through one of my settings and how magic works: the spell doesn't work if no one on your plane can understand the language. I treat it sort of like casting the spell is throwing a net out over your current plane, attempting to catch and pull in an understanding of the language from another being, living or undead. If there is no functioning minds on your plane that can read the language, then there's nothing for it to bring back to you, and so languages of long dead races still remain a mystery and a nice plot thread. What's even more fun about it is the implications of how it works, and the wording "on your plane". Your players find a language they can't decipher, even with the spell? Maybe they start planes hopping with a copy of the message they can cast the spell on, trying to find a soul that can speak it. Or even more fun, when the players delve into an ancient ruin of a race that's assumed to be long dead and extinct, and the caster decides to cast Comprehend Languages on a message.............and it works. Now there's the knowledge that at least *something* exists out there on the plane that knows this language, that didn't when the spell was first attempted, and the players can maybe even try to find them.

[@TheNerdySimulation]

Davis, I think if you haven't already you should definitely check out Maze Rats for a magic system that is *technically* non-defined. The way it works is if you want to memorize a spell, you roll on a chart to decide what the first word and second word of the spell is. Upon casting the spell is expended and lost (similar to Vancian magic and thought demons) and then the GM, possibly with some inspiration from the player if so desired, interprets the effect of that spell based solely on it's name and the current environment it is unleashed in. Each time you want to memorize a new spell, you roll again and learn a new phrase, which allows for a sort of randomness. I think you'd enjoy it very much and could easily create your own chart if you wanted! :D Also, a quick note about prophecies: Just because you said it to that party, doesn't mean it has to happen during their adventures or lifetime. If the events of the campaign end up circumnavigating that particular prophecy (even if kept vague) that doesn't mean it didn't come true, it just has YET to come true!

[@cristotheranger4263]

I think it's great that you guys are breaking down the various schools of magic. I find it amusing that the series is not going in alphabetical order, the way and eccentric wizard Mike just bounce around his laboratory or Tower. I was however hoping that the next video you do is on Abjuration magic because I am contemplating playing an abjurer as my next PC. Thanks for all the work you do I look forward to more great content!

[@WebDM]

Thanks Nate! We're going through em the way it seems to be best!

[@kylestillwell7031]

I think you're actually fine making True Strike a bonus action. The advantage doesn't kick in until the next round anyway, AND it requires concentration AND it gives up one of your cantrip slots, so I really don't think you'd make it overpowered to make it a bonus action

[@danielsantarosa101]

You can use the bonus action before the main action

[@kylestillwell7031]

@@danielsantarosa101 spell specifies “ON YOUR NEXT TURN” in the wording of the spell itself, so even if you do cast it before your action, the advantage doesn't take effect until the next turn

[@BrianB2DDunn]

I'd love to see a DM prep guide from you guys.

[@ethanrockatansky7138]

The idea of each class getting expertise in their "cornerstone skill," as I will call it, is a cool idea. Although a lore bard/scout rogue would be proficient in like everything and have all the expertise(which is a fun idea.)

[@ethanrockatansky7138]

I did a quick variant human(took the skilled feat) 4 lore bard(took the prodigy feat)/3 scout rogue and I'm only not proficient in 3 skills and I have 8 expertise just including a free expertise in performance.

[@darktrey50]

Imagine finally getting your big divination spell and your dm is like "maybe"

[@TheirBeans]

What? A Goliath Race video? Yeah, you could totally do that! 😉 this is my favorite thumbnail btw, well done

[@chrissamples1700]

one of my favorite characters I played was a Diviner, except I kind of made some home rules for him (DM approved) since it can be kinda broken like you said. I played him as more of a super-natural channeler/witch doctor than a classic wizard and it was super fun, it was a cool opportunity to make add a lot of flavor to a boring class

[@oneeyedstranger4072]

I enjoy 7th Sea's magic system for having a lot of spells that have unpredictability built into them, as well as an understanding that there are unexplained magical forces in the world

[@josiahklein70]

There are plenty of limitations directly from the books or special exceptions you, the DM, can impose with proper explanation later or notice in advance. Also, communication and corroboration with your diviner can make the process run much smoother, so don't be afraid to tell the player a bit more than the others or ask them for more information in certain situations in order to lay down ground rules. Making a diviner that keeps certain secrets from the rest of the party can make things especially entertaining. _Comprehend languages_ doesn't work on glyphs and iconography that are not technically part of a system of written language. It can decipher parts of a wizard's spellbook, for example, but not what all of the runes and symbols necessary to the magic mean. _Detect magic_ can be outright tricked or negated by the Lvl 2 Illusion spell _magic aura,_ also known as _Nystul's magic aura._ It also has limits which can be exploited: it only has a range of 30 ft, and this can be blocked by 1 ft stone, 1 in common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 ft wood or dirt. It also does not tell the diviner specific properties about it apart from its school(s) of magic. _Identify_ only works at Touch range and over 10 min if not prepared. If used on an object, it grants you a rundown of its magical properties, spells, or other magical effects on it, if any. If cast on a creature being affected by a spell or magical effect, it can tell you what it is, but only if that creature can remain still within range for long enough, your concentration is not broken, or you have the spell prepared and get within melee range. This can be risky or downright suicidal at times. _Augury_ only tells you weal or woe, both or neither, with a secret 25% chance of a false reading when used multiple times between rests. _Detect thoughts_ does not tell one everything, works out to a 30 ft range, and does not work on Int 3 or lower or creatures that know no languages. It takes an action to search for thoughts of creatures according to those limits not concealed by 2 ft stone, 2 in metal other than lead, a thin sheet of metal, magical warding, _glibness,_ or a class/stat block feature. It only tells what a creature under those requirements within 30 ft is thinking on the very surface, such as "Man, I am hungry," "What happened to Larry? Haven't seen him in a while," "I wonder what that sound was," etc. It takes an action to switch targets and is concentration for 1 min, 2 if using the _Extended Spell_ metamagic. It also takes an action to probe deeper, which alerts the creature as the diviner learns its deeper thoughts, emotional state, and/or motivations, such as "I just need the money. This doesn't make me a bad guy," "Whatever happens, I just want to give my daughter a decent meal and a roof over her head," "I'm gonna be rich off of this! Then, I'll finally be able to prove them wrong!" "I'm only doing this so I can kill that son of a b**ch," or whatever else you can think of on a failed Wis save, ending the spell on a success. After being alerted, the creature can make an Int contest to end the spell with its action or cast _dispel magic_ on itself. Its potential is great. _Truesight_ requires a special ointment for the eyes made from saffron, tallow, and mushrooms worth 25 gp to be consumed. If you slap a specific requirement on it, such as needing rare ingredients, being unable to obtain such ingredients in the setting, especially planescape, perhaps requiring substitute ingredients, not knowing how to make it, -- dare I say it -- not being able to afford it, etc. Also, the creature it must be cast upon can be really no-touchy about their eyes and you rule that touching it onto the eyeball(s) is required. _Contact other plane_ makes you go insane on a failed DC 15 Int save and only gives one-word responses or small phrases if those would be too cryptic from an entity that is not omniscient and therefore does not necessarily know the answers. You see, there are so many ways to make it interesting and fun to use these spells if you make sure they succeed or fail in ways that prolong the mystery or at least make things interesting, you account for all the loopholes or create your own while communicating your rulings to the players as needed, or at least provide adequate risk/reward conundra.

[@ryanadshead4809]

Identify also reveals spell effects on objects like doors or chests, as well as people/creatures. Most people think its only for magic items.

[@nathanwilson7929]

I just started dming, watched ball your videos, and rewatching for inspiration a near the 10:00 mark you speak about knowledge the dm may not know. I would suggest maybe randomly rolling the outcomes ( if you don't already have a plot point to use) and use a later moment as a Deus ex machina of fate: "you freeze and see the moment play out in your head, there is a Archer hiding in the trees waiting for his shot that will strike your prisoner." Boom will. I think there was a anime or two with big fighting robots with future sight like situations that inspired this approach.

[@reidycakes93]

Always wanted to play a bone casting divination wizard.

[@destroyer8000]

Got a lot of good info out of this. Mostly, the fact that I now NEED Jolly Rancher dice now.

[@Team_Orchid]

Incorporating oracles into games as a DM is fun, sure, but you know what's more fun? Having an oracle for a party member that you can throw a vision or omen onto whenever you feel like. It also helps when the party is completely fucking lost.

[@andrewlaporte5477]

Identify: It gives you an item's name, and if not explains its general properties. For instance, if you cast identify on a horn of valhalla, normally the spell would explain its mechanics in place of its title. (Identify is very specific) But if it was named the Gorger of Grindshard, all you'd get would be the name.

[@donashcroft93]

I've always been a big fan of the idea that any contacted higher being will get back to the players later and have the players be put on "hold" then for the next few in game days or however long passes they constantly hear holding music till they finally get to the front of the queue (no mechanical effects but good players will RP the constant noise)

[@ItsRlyMe]

I like magic items that have a command word in some unknown language, so comprehend language call be an issue. Because of that, I add a little house rule. Whenever you use comprehend, you know what the text or speech means, but you don't know how to pronounce the word. This adds back the adventure to for finding the word. This has been super helpful for me

[@evanfelch7689]

I am playing an Ancestral Guardian barbarian right now and the ability to cast Augury and Clairvoyance have made chasing down a target much easier when we have to decide on what tunnel to go down and the ranger flubs the survival roll.

[@dracoargentum9783]

A couple of ideas I came up with while watching your show: with Comprehend Languages, two things should be noted, with the verbal portion I could see still requiring a straight Int check due to the raw literalness of the translation to actually understand what was said, and with the written portion the caster must be able to touch the text, what if the caster uses his spell smugly attempts to interpret your secret inscription that threatens to circumvent the ton of material you have planned for the decoding, and you sweetly smile and declare that they understand none of it, after closer examination the inscription area is abnormally smooth, because a thin sheet of transparent material covers the runes. With other divination spells threatening additional legwork perhaps you can convince the other players to "double check the work" and still go research the information, not because they mistrust the diviner, but if you mention all the xp not going on this side quest they will loose out on. Or you could point out that there is more to learn than just the raw facts that divination spells give, for example, in the Sword of Truth series all the Sisters and wizards in the temple of Light knew what "bringer of death" meant, but it took Richard getting there to understand how it fit into their situation.

[@trippfall]

I love Foresight! My Wizard cast it, and haste, on a Mastermind Rouge before an arena style boss fight. Our Warlock, pact of the chain, also put his familiar [spider shape] on him and cast Invisibility after the Mastermind's turn. Smoked the boss!

[@SilverGarrison]

True strike? The next attack roll from a target of your choice within 30 ft is given a +5 bonus. This lets you counter disadvantage, stacks with advantage, and then some.

[@herbertkraft7379]

I've got a topic suggestion, because I am struggeling with that right now: What does a good one-shot need/ How to construct one-shots.

[@jh-ne4sy]

Our tables fix for True Strike is to have it level up alongside other cantrips. It is no longer advantage. At first level it just lets you roll 2 d20s for the attack and take the higher. At 5th it goes up so you can roll 3 d20s and take the highest. At 11th you roll 4. And 17th 5.

[@snarkback]

True strike can be a bonus action and specify it must be another creature targeted making it a strictly support spell.

[@jenniferspangler600]

Wizard with a dip into Knowledge Cleric is a good fix for Arcana problem. My lvl 9 wizard has a +12 to Arcana and History, and it's so worth it.

[@cappadocius9379]

Whenever I use Divination I always try to let my DM know ahead of time what I am playing so they have time to prepare. Though its never perfect though my character who is a divination Wizard is also a crazy Kobold so even if I get a sign was it my divination or my craziness. I even told the DM to give me false visions. It is just so much fun and leads to great problems.

[@nonya_bidness]

Comprehend languages Just make sure your mysterious tomes and ancient glyphs are written in code if you need to make them a focal point of adventuring. player - "I cast comprehend languages and read the grimoire" DM - "you immediately gain an understanding that the grimoire is written in abyssal thanks to your spell, however you can't tell what it's actually saying as it's been written in some sort of code. make an arcana/history check." player - "i got a " DM - "something about the way the otherworldly characters are scattered about the page strikes you as reminiscent of something you've seen before, thanks to your strong command of ancient ciphers (aided by your comprehend languages spell), you remember that similar code's were used by the ancient, demon worshiping of ." your player still feels like they've made a great deal of progress thanks to their unique ability to cast comprehend languages (because they have), and there's still plenty of legwork leftover for the rest of the party to do via the adventure to decipher the text that you'd already planned.

[@willmendoza8498]

I would love to see you guys explore the magic system in Cypher System or Mage

[@the_rose_garden01]

It'd be great if they covered Mage. That is one of my favorite TTRPG's of all time, second only to Demon: the Fallen

[@penguinpimp2k2]

MtA is a really compelling system.

[@the_rose_garden01]

@@penguinpimp2k2 Mage is actually really fun when you take out Paradox and introduce more social repercussions. Sure, it turns into Mage: The Masquerade, but its one hell of a ride

[@Kyle120212XD]

Favorite item that I always give to my party pretty early on. Telepathic Earrings.

[@witchBoi_Connor]

I reeeeaally want to make a divination wizard/GOO Warlock. She levels up to a point of being able to cast Contact Other Plane or she finds a scroll, and when she casts the spell and fails the save, she comes in contact with a GOO. A while later, new warlock powers begin to grow within her, and she starts leveling that.

[@youngpaddy1]

Giving certain divination spells a physical cost is always fun, it definitely makes the player consider their choices before acting.

[@blueblur271]

I think a cool idea for a video would be to go into krakens. They're always something people know exist in the back of their minds; but they're really never utilized as well as they can be. Because people don't know all that much about them.

[@whimforge]

My party has learned that if you find something deep in a 'dungeon' that is pristine, it's magic - so much so that we coined the phrase 'if it ain't broke, it's special'. :D

[@thehulkster9434]

While I get the issue with divination spells bypassing obstacles, pretty much any spell or ability that is not pure damage will help a player bypass something that could otherwise be a more drawn out story. That's kind of the point of magic though. If utility spells didn't let you save effort and energy, there would be no point in taking the spells. It may limit some options, but I've never really seen a creative DM who couldn't just come up with another story hook that wouldn't be bypassed. Especially since any high level enemy worth their threat would have some defense against divination.

[@thernalis6292]

Regarding your dissatisfaction with magic systems in RPGs, have you ever looked at the magic system in Mage: The Awakening? It's my personal favorite, and succeeds at making magic feel magical in my opinion.

[@WebDM]

Jim at least played that a couple of times ages ago and really enjoyed it, iirc! Back when it was newish.

[@rileymitchell3510]

The way I do augury is i clearly lay out to the players 'Woe means, if you keep walking in this direction, go through this door, you will most likely be hurt' 'wheel simply means, if you walk down this hall, if you open this door and walk into the room, nothing will hurt you if you remain passive', so there could be an entire squad of enemies in the room, but, if for whatever reason they won't attack the party without provocation I'll say wheel

[@Ekigane]

Prophecies are a fun thing. I used a game to get my players to create their own, and like 6 sessions later I pointed out things they've done that fit the prophecies and they freaked out because they derailed my plans a couple of those times.

[@liammorris9372]

An interesting idea for divination would be to apply the “Dark Forest” theory to it. Essentially, the Dark Forest theory is a cosmological theory as to why alien life hasn’t been discovered. The theory is that no one dares reveal themselves for fear of being killed by another species. Applying this to divination, when you cast a divination spell, its like you’re lighting a torch. It makes it bit easier for you to see but also makes you far more visible to other diviners, drawing attention to your self. So if anyone was looking for someone attempting to decipher a certain piece of text or scry on the Big Bad, they would very easily be able to see you. Counter divination would only completely work against someone who is significantly less skilled than yourself at divination, otherwise it just reduces how easily you can be seen but doesn’t make you invisible. Obviously, the more powerful spells you’re casting, the brighter the torch is and the stronger your counter divination would have to be to remain hidden.

[@bhatfield1417]

Make more videos more often, love brad

[@Leivve]

I also employ the whole "Because you're acting on knowledge that hasn't happened yet, you are unintentionally changing it." So if you asked if going left or right will bring you fortune, and you hear left, well because you're going left to find fortune the character's guard isn't as high, cause they weren't expecting to be ambushed.

[@Dougie373]

I've been toying with the idea that divination spells "lock in" the future, as in when someone uses them to see future events the DM makes any rolls the spell would predict so that when they come up later the outcome is already set. This could really increase the tension before a fight if for example the player knows they will get hit by a certain attack or fail a certain death save.

[@asdmrbyalchemicailleach3657]

Conceptually I love the idea of legend lore, and really many of the other divination spells, but I have so much less world building experience. My players are on the cusp of level 4 though so I have time. A new player that joined chose to make a diviner wizard though, and seems much more interested in the roleplaying aspect of things, so I will certainly need to work with him to manage expectations and make sure that I can be prepared for whenever he chooses to use those divination abilities.

[@robertstull8759]

So... it took alot of work to house rule most of Divination at our table, but that up front work paid off heavily in the long run. Basically, we turned most of Divination into Maybe's and added buffs associated with casting the spell. There was no real way to keep our DM from being over worked, our players from being let down, or our games from being boring with the "Rules as Written" divination.

[@hoenn1999]

Personally I like the idea of spells that allow you to identify magic on an item letting you see the spell but not understand it. So if it's magic you're already familiar with you know what it does, but if its a special spell or magic that the DM wants the party to find more information on the party has to go and find more information to discern what the spell does. Identify just gives the party a starting hint on where they would go to find more information on what the magic does.