F**k it, invent your own D&D spells

[@Cruzz999]

The big bad of our low level campaign raises his hand and proclaims: "I cast Fire.." Our bard, Otto, interupts "BOLT". The firebolt deals 1d10 damage to a floor tile in the middle of our group. We have once again been saved by "Otto's correct"

[@cheeselord3655]

That's genius

[@MichelleNyxRaymond]

Hahaha, that’s amazing.😂

[@saccherrirhysha2660]

The party breath of haze druid acquired a ring of spell change on one letter of a spell one per day. Been using goodberry and making slight research changes. Dm let me know the druid is a crafter of a new spell series. Druids been baking "goodmerry" scones, muffins. They got a kick if there's extra berries in the scones. Going to try "Goofberries" in the new batch. Field testing. "Hey party, who wants a muffin?" Party - NOO! Learning to bake spells responsibly.😊

[@MoonbeamPony]

​@@saccherrirhysha2660"Godberry."

[@GinnyDi]

Holy crap this is such a good bard feat idea. Suddenly your encyclopedic knowledge of 5e spells becomes a super power 😂

[@Whichendup]

"...and certainly not my players who generally don't let a single D&D related thought sully their empty minds in between sessions." As a forever GM I felt this in my soul.

[@foolcat23]

Don't we all love the Casuals, who are solely present for socializing reasons, and would never admit to having something as mundane as TTRPGs as a hobby?

[@AM-hf9kk]

@@foolcat23 Urgh... The people that seem to think reading their three-page character sheet is akin to Tolstoy?

[@Vanessa__Pauls]

I dont understand that, I think about DnD all the time between sessions.

[@Rhyder77]

I felt it in my heart and in my soul. Which is part of the dramatic villain speech I'm concocting in my mind as I write this comment😉

[@joeo3377]

Me too, buddy. Me too.

[@Swan-may]

To really hammer in the point: Mordekainen was Gary Gygax's character. Melf was Luke Gygax's character. Bigby was Rob Kuntz' character. Drawmij was Jim Ward's character. Leomund was Len Lakofka's character. Tasha is named after a kid who wrote letters to Gary. I could keep going for a long, long time. It is quite literally a day zero DND tradition to have your PC wizards make up spells and name them after them. Let them! Keep the tradition going!

[@aishaali9771]

Is Hadar anyone's character?

[@Swan-may]

@@aishaali9771 As far as I know, no. Earliest reference I can find to him is in Dragon Magazine #366 as an example Star Pact Warlock's patron.

[@GinnyDi]

This is such a cool fact. I didn't know about Tasha's name!

[@vickieden1973]

@@aishaali9771 Hadar was from 4E, one of their range of "star-like Elder Evils" AKA Lovecraft meets Galactus. If I recall it correctly, a series of stars were infested by the Far Realm and became bizarre sentient evils of great and unfathomable power. This was the source of their Star Pact warlock's powers, and eventually got rolled into the Great Old One patron in 5E.

[@palatonian9618]

I think I knew 90% of these names were PCs at one point but hearing them all listed this way together is *so* impactful for some reason. Thank you for your comment!

[@jenkohr]

One of my characters firmly believes that spells can be DOWNcast, not just upcast, so she keeps experimenting with magic until she discovers a way to do it

[@logancuster8035]

Very cool idea

[@jenkohr]

@@logancuster8035 thank you! She’s one of my favorites I’ve ever made!

[@BiowareNut]

Downcasting would be WAY more powerful than upcasting. You'd be able to cast 9th level spells multiple times per encounter.

[@jenkohr]

@@BiowareNut I’m well aware, a weaker but lower spell slot fire ball would be broken

[@Delmworks]

I’ve had similar ideas as an expansion of ritual casting- by using various sacrificed and expanded geometry, you can cast spells above your station for expensive costs in time and effort

[@tsifirakiehl4250]

I’ve never made a homebrew spell, but I’ve taken to being a bit lenient with the spell lists. I recently let my party’s Eldritch Knight take the spell Ceremony even though it wasn’t on the list, solely because we agreed it would be hilarious for this deranged little chaos gremlin to be able to officiate weddings.

[@GinnyDi]

😆😆 brilliant. Honestly, if there's a feat that lets characters take spells that aren't on their class list, I can sure as heck just give one to a PC if I like.

[@BalthusHomewood]

I could almost see incentivizing my players who play primary spellcasters to make at least one new spell by level 10 as a sort of "graduation", especially Wizards. A magical Thesis Project.

[@GinnyDi]

Oooh yes, great idea! I just love weaving it into character storylines

[@wompusslompus5424]

Love this idea!

[@koboldsage9112]

I did this exactly. Twice. There was a bundled magic missiles spell, (3rd lvl) shoots one target 4-6 times or so and then branches to that many secondary magic missile targets. (Loosely based on chain magic missile). And a whole other character created an illusion spell where you enchant a bundle of sticks to look like wands of magic missiles, including firing illusory missile attacks that did psychic damage, briefly turning a crowd of peasants into a fairly formidable fighting force.

[@BalthusHomewood]

@@GinnyDi I did this when I played a Dread Necromancer. His Thesis spells were a spell that made an eye function like a video camera, and another that trapped the soul of a recently slain character in that dead characters skull. The DM liked the idea, and we got a really cool NPC out of that last spell 😁

[@MichaelKrinsky-hx1vu]

Oh, that is a solid idea!

[@andrewmiddleton3487]

My wife developed a psychic-themed version of wither and bloom and it's a very fun addition to our campaign.

[@GinnyDi]

Ooh that sounds amazing!! 😍

[@AM-hf9kk]

I remade the spell for Clerics, with slight adjustments. It seems silly that the servants of deities with power over life and death can't tap into your will to live, but the schmuck that stumbled into a fairy circle can.

[@stevenlanzarotta9576]

“That’s why I always carry a sword.” I’m noticing a running gag. 🤔

[@GinnyDi]

people are always asking me, "Ginny, why do you always carry a sword?" so I thought I'd let 'em know 😌

[@isaacbenrubi9613]

The correct response to that is, "why don't you?" It's not your fault they're grossly unprepared.

[@DndNate-qs1fz]

What type of sword is your favorite?

[@lindafreeman7030]

Ginny should do a colab with The Click, so they can compare blades.

[@Montyandrew45]

It's a sword that casts fireball right?

[@foodflare9870]

My interpretation of things was that the spells that have a name are because they were notably tied to the creator. And that all the "generic spells" used to be tied to a name at one point but it has been so genericized and ubiquitously known about, but the creator's name has been forgotten to time and only the spell name is retained.

[@tmytyson]

"Kanavad's Low-Fat Grease (trademark) has now entered the public domain."

[@GinnyDi]

You heard it here first, mages! Protect your trademark! 😂

[@SeiaiAnkoku]

I enjoy the idea that you might be able to come across ancient scrolls or spellbooks made by the original creators of these spells. Netheril: Empire of Magic is a 2nd Edition book that has some of this exact thing in its spelllist, with almost all of them having names tied to them. It's fun to make up your own and add them to your campaigns for the players to find, especially if you include some odd quirks that the original creator liked or couldn't quite get rid of.

[@MonkeyJedi99]

"I have a scroll of Emesis." - "Nemesis?" "No, I said it right. I wonder what the spell does. You want to try it out?"

[@MatthewTheWanderer]

Wouldn't it make you vomit?

[@Eowar]

"I chug my potion of Eructation. What does that do?" "A cone of thunder damage and non-goblinoids are embarrassed to be seen with you."

[@CrispysTavern]

MOM! Ginny called me a coward. Seriously though, my main issue with spell invention is taking the time to look over their ideas. It wouldn't even take me that long... I think I'm just lazy.

[@GinnyDi]

Honestly there is SO much to manage as a dm. Not wanting to do this too is valid!

[@reallunacy]

Put some of the burden back on the players then. Have them give you a few examples of similar spells and their spell levels so you can make sure it is in line with the power. That way the approval process is you reading one new and two or three existing spells and just comparing.

[@christiansorensen7567]

You're not a coward if you intend your puns.

[@SpaceVENTING]

I have them cover their spell ideas with me in-between sessions myself. Gives everyone more time and less pressure.

[@SpaceVENTING]

Also tell them to look up example spells from their current casting level that are already game approved. They should get an idea of how their own spell should go based off that

[@lemongambit]

You find a spell scroll for a cantrip called "Derrick's Dirty Down Rust". It makes things lightly rust as if you were in a grimdark story. It seems to allude to an entire set of oxidizing various metals. Why Derrick was interested in mildly oxidizing metallics is unknown but it does instantly add a cool roughness to your armor

[@TinyRobotED-tm9rs]

Lol 😂

[@MichelleNyxRaymond]

Lol Amazing 😅

[@theapexsurvivor9538]

Instantly casts it on an overly pompous and pretentious knight captain who loves his finely polished armour

[@siderisanon7860]

You've sold me. I picked up "Vordanin's Book of Spellcraft" today. As someone who has been playing versions of D&D since the 1980s, it is always fascinating to see a person like you who is so enthusiastic about gaming referring to "things you learned on the internet" and the like as if it was your character excavating an ancient tomb or library. It really make me realize how long the hobby has been around and how far it has come in across the decades.

[@GinnyDi]

I think it's awesome how much bigger the game has gotten thanks to the internet! We have so many awesome creators sharing their ideas in online spaces. Even in the last 5 years, the game has changed so much.

[@eepopgames2741]

A safety valve I like to use when a player wants a custom spell is to tie a spell component to it (that is just costly enough to not be able to be bypassed by focuses, etc). Then you have leverage to make the component more expensive (More people have heard about the spell and the demand has driven up the market) if you need to reign it in, or give the player a deal buying it in bulk once it has been proven safe.

[@quinn0517]

I like that. I'm gonna steal it. Thx

[@StinkerTheFirst]

That is exactly the sort of advice I was looking for in these comments. Thanks!

[@tonysladky8925]

A couple of years ago, I played a Shadow Sorcerer/Great Old One Warlock whose gimmick was that all his "spells" were actually just him ripping open a portal to the Shadowfell and grabbing a horrific little creature (picture all the gnarly non-humanoid ghosts that show up in the "everything is going wrong" montage in every Ghostbusters movie) that creates the spell's effect and disappears back to the Shadowfell when the spell ends. So I came up with a cantrip to replace taking something like Mage Hand or Prestidigitation and give me more of that summoner vibe. Plus, I gave them some "ill-behaved pet" vibes like knocking stuff over or eating the object you wanted them to fetch. *Iwen's Minute Monsters* Conjuration cantrip *Casting Time:* 1 action *Range:* 30 feet *Components:* V, S *Duration:* Up to one minute Calling out the name of a tiny creature from another plane, you bring it to your current plane to complete a simple task. You create one of the following magical effects within range: * *Glow.* The creature glows or produces faint flames or sparks, shedding dim light of a color of your choice in a five-foot cube. * *Eat.* The creature eats one tiny, nonmagical object that weighs less than 5 pounds and that isn't being worn or carried. * *Ruin.* The creature scratches, bites, spews slime over, or otherwise causes minor cosmetic damage to one object no larger than one foot on each side, or it befouls up to 1 cubic foot of food, causing it to taste and smell disgusting. If possible, it may knock the object over as part of this effect. * *Speak.* The creature makes a loud call that can be heard up to 100 feet away. * *Fetch.* The creature picks up one tiny, nommagical object that weighs less than 5 pounds and that isn't being worn or carried and brings it to you. When you give this command, there is a 50% chance the creature will take the Eat action instead. If you cast this spell multiple times, you can have up to three creatures each performing one of its 1-minute effects active at a time, and you can dismiss such an effect as an action. *Spell Lists:* Druid, Sorcerer, Warlock

[@SteveAkaDarktimes]

give that spell to a imp or trickster enemy "terrorizing" a small village.

[@gardenagnostic4138]

This is WAY too cute

[@GinnyDi]

This is great fun! And brilliant for distractions. I bet your rogue LOVED you 😆

[@liamwhite3522]

SPELL OF LITTLE GUY?! I love it!

[@davidwatches]

I added a simple reskinned spell to my island-hopping campaign called "freeze" which was just a water-based version of the "entangle" spell. It was granted to the party druid by an ancient lizardfolk shaman. The player has since used it to great effect. New spells are great for adding more flavor to your game.

[@johnrushman1586]

We actually invented a rogue class called the hexhacker. I got the idea from the Shadowrun rpg. Want to cast a spell but are too lazy to learn magic yourself? Why not borrow someone else's spell while they are casting it. A hexhacker can see the "coding" of magic as 3 dimensional gears and dials. They tamper with a casters spell during use. Rewiring the spell to cause unintended effects. They can also crack magic locks of doors and chests. Hexkhackers come in handy for when invading magic facilities. My hexhacker was a tinker gnome that had a crude keypad connected to a headband. He hacked everything. Lol. And yes, they are "hacking the code of magic". Fun class to play.

[@gbprime2353]

Many campaigns ago, one of my player's signature moves was casting Flaming Sphere and rolling it through combat. This was great at lower levels, but the players started to razz him because he would keep using it even when they were 15th level and he wasn't really pulling his weight. So the player made a new spell... it LOOKED just like flaming sphere, but it did more damage, and it worked like a Resilient Sphere... only it could roll over things and trap them inside where they burned round after round. No one complained again after seeing Jaust's Incendiary Sphere in action. O.o

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Love this topic. Make your own EVERYTHING!

[@GinnyDi]

Yesssss 🙌🙌 why not spend ALL our time making D&D content, spells, stories, characters....

[@PeteRepeatYT]

‘There’s no limit to what you can homebrew’ is my motto!

[@Joseph-ky3os]

Why can't anyone protect a standard noble from being assassinated by a single disgruntled sorcerer casting magic missile? *Welp* time to write a whole subclass for it! - Me...too often

[@Heleyrine]

And put them all in a cauldron which you name after yourself? **wink**

[@sr.maximus9136]

I saw four types of GMs 1 Master picked any prepared start campaign and just goes with thing that written in the book 2 Master makes a campaign in prepared setting like world of forgotten realms 3 Master makes own world and campaign in ready system 4 Master creates just new full system for each campaign (and you have no right to not read all this 20 pages explanation how to cast spell building it with different 'forms' 'appearances' and 'elements' like some Lego) I found myself in last group and that's why no one ask me to play oneshot (they will have to learn stuff for half of session)

[@anacoanagoldenflower]

I really really love this, and I'm definitely getting Vordanin's! I'm a therapist who runs therapeutic campaigns for teenagers with heavy trauma, so they often have very specific aesthetics that they want to match with their spells. No clue why D&D 5e just never thought to make a spell that facilitates "I want spooky murder witch vibes that make the BBEG's words appear in the air and highlight for me when he's gaslighting us" /s I've been fumbling my way through half-assed spellcasting homebrew and being bored with flipping through the PHB's spells for a million times so I am very delighted that this came out at a great time for me. It's also really appreciated that you let us know what you're worried about with Vordinin's too. Also, how you described players in the beginning made me genuinely laugh out loud which was nice. Also also, hi fellow underappreciated alto!!!

[@Imperial_Squid]

"Never half-ass homebrew two spells, always whole-ass homebrew one spell" but really, I can't agree with this video enough, one small thing I love to this day is that one DM of mine let me reflavour Eldritch Blast so it more closely fit whatever patron I went with, go with some kind of fiery devil? It's now a streak of fire from your hand, and it deals fire damage not force. Swear your allegiance to some ancient beast whose corpse was found encapsulated in ice? It's now a spray of ice shards and deals cold damage. It's such a tiny thing but it feels so fun when you can reskin you most commonly used spells to feel more flavourful to the character

[@jordanw2741]

When we were playing Curse of Strahd, the DM had corrupted our thoughts and tried to turn us on each other. I tried to pass "Power Word Kenku Kill" as a fourth level Bard spell. My DM... Didn't approve it for some reason.

[@fightingfalcon777]

As a former choir bro myself, your altos vs sopranos jokes speaks to my deeply and tickles me immensely 😂

[@zenith110]

This is something I love doing with spooky and weird material components being added to spells. Experiment! Try adding monster parts of rare minerals to the spell components list! Do you like spooky symbolism? Make a new material component for Fireball from Fulgurite (lightning struck sand) - TAH-DAH! Lightning Ball! Get out there and get creative!

[@GinnyDi]

I recently saw a reel about the fact that spell components are actually funny jokes/puns related to the spell's effects. If a player came to me with a pun and a component, I would be SO on board.

[@zenith110]

@@GinnyDi You know the famous Detect Thoughts spell? Well... A penny for your thoughts is quite literally the component!

[@goldfencer]

In my Sunday game, I had the idea that the party’s wizard could take the Wall of Force spell and modify it, eventually inventing a new spell called Nemezark’s Naval Ram.

[@cojec]

My first time running my own campaign, I was with a group of veteran players who wanted to challenge themselves. One of them was a wizard who relied exclusively on traps, who grew up in the forest teaching himself magic. Because of that, most of his spells were his own creation, designed to trip up opponents creatively. I worked with him to create the spells Valen's Adhesive Armor (which causes melee weapons to stick to his skin) and Spitfire (a touch-triggered version of Fireball that takes 10 minutes to cast), and both of them made the campaign so much more fun and unique. 10/10 would reshape reality to our will again.

[@cogspace]

I made a cleric/paladin spell for a past campaign called Divine Sacrifice - A spherical barrier up to one mile in radius surrounds the caster. For 8 hours, it absorbs all attacks that target creatures, objects, or locations inside the barrier. Creatures inside the barrier can still attack outward. At the end of the 8 hours, the barrier disappears and all the damage it blocked hits the caster at once. - I didn't really expect the players to use it. It was more about what it told them about the hero who created that spell: how far they would go to defend their home. There's something about putting the "lore" into the game mechanics that can sometimes make it feel more real. Makes the players seriously consider whether they might use something like that.

[@deKahedron]

My in-game explanation is that there are thousands of spells, and creating them isn't that hard. But creating _efficient_ spells is. Nobody wants to bother learning Myrkel's Sonic Boom to deal 3d6 thunder damage with a 5th level spell slot. For players creating their own spells, this also allows for the spell to be balanced in real time, without needing to ever nerf their favourite toy. When they first create their spell, it's super inefficient and only serves as proof of concept. It might have a really long casting time, a too-high level, an expensive component, a very short range or a very weak effect. Over time, as the character continues to work on it, these restrictions can be slowly removed or reduced, one by one, until both player and DM are happy with the power level. You can even allow the PC to have a slightly better version that the published version (since they know the strange little quirks of their baby).

[@Joseph-ky3os]

I love using homebrewed spells and in my long running games I have been introducing them here and there with some twists. One trick that's been fun has been the introduction of what are *objectively worse* spells here and there. Like I gave my wizards (I have two in one party) a spellbook that had a selection of a few spells that were entirely new or powerful but, it was also full of others things like a spell that looked an awful lot like fireball but did less damage and was 4th level, or one that was similar to the arcane deflection feature of War Wizards but cost a spell slot and gave a much smaller bonus. I also sometimes give these sorts of spells to enemies I want to give spellcasting but not scale as much as it normally does. Not only did my players love feeling like magic as a whole has been progressing in the world over the many centuries but they occasionally get to feel uniquely powerful amongst their modern peers. It's brought such a fun dynamic to the history of my world and I love it!

[@derskalde4973]

One spell modification, that would be mostly useless, but could situationally be handy to have: the _Light_ cantrip A Wizard and magic researcher NPC in my campaign found this. You need material components in form of a glass sphere filled with Mercury, and then cast light on it. As a result, the light is purple. When cast this way, the cantrip produces UV light, that is harmless to anything, but certain things glow while exposed to it. Now you can look up what glows under UV light, and think about fun ways to integrate it into the adventure. Maybe the PCs are in a dark place, that crawls with Giant Scorpions, but thanks to this cantrip they now all glow bright blue and are easily spotted. Maybe they use it to test if gems are actually real. Or maybe they use it to solve a crime by making invisible blood stains visible. The only limit are your creativity and what the DM deems possible or plausible. Or dig up spells from previous Editions and bring them up to current game mechanics.

[@theLohan]

"That's why I carry a sword!" The GinnyDi tag line - we may need a t-shirt

[@dgunslingerwdragneel5754]

I have a wizard player who really wanted to cast a cleric/paladin spell, so I let his character focus on studying the spell for two days, and roll a D20. He rolled a Nat 20, and he now knows lesser restoration. Not inventing a new spell, but letting him feel like he did something impossible. Which he kinda did.

[@splatman7300]

as a person playing a non-religious wizard in a part of 2 clerics, 2 paladins, and a cleric/monk multiclass, i would *love* to be able to go "see? i can do your magic too"

[@GRSZiik]

@@splatman7300 "Oh, it's just a couple of runes and a weird swishing motion. It was nothing, really"

[@Merilirem]

Letting people learn a spell from outside their class is great. Sure some are broken but most are perfectly fine. No one was ever been hurt by letting an eldritch knight learn a healing spell.

[@GRSZiik]

@Merilirem Works especially well if it's something your party doesn't have access to. If you have no Cleric or Druid, learning to heal or revive is super useful for the continuation of the story

[@EyeMCreative]

Plus, if you're worried about "following rules" you could always just allow them to take magic initial or ritual caster or something to give them a couple spells outside their list

[@davidcarnan1270]

Homebrew Spellcrafting 101: - Take any pre-existing spell - Change one letter - Profit Our sorcerer started my Witchlight campaign by purchasing three misprinted spell scrolls. So far, Find Stud has provided some useful (sexy) mobility, while a Magic Scone laced with sleeping potion is ready to be dropped in the nearest monster's gullet!

[@reesr]

Ahhh, Find Stud, the signature spell of every dad preparing to hang something to the wall. (Everyone within audible range needs to make a Wisdom save to prevent themselves from groaning when the dad inevitably casts it on themselves)

[@Farne536]

This reminded me of when I was reading the effect of Find steed and read "warhorse" as "warehouse" and my dm loved the idea. We did not use it but still

[@robertsemon1712]

“Scroll of Inn Visibility - You can see all inns and taverns in a 10 mile radius.”

[@digitaljanus]

This is a great idea: -Tragic Missile: Inflicts unstoppable psychic damage as the target remembers their most anguishing regrets. -Mireball: Drown a 20 foot radius sphere in a sudden eruption of swamp muck. -Contusion: Inflicts bludgeoning damage on one target. -Leomund's Tiny Hat: The whole party can take refuge for their long rest inside the wizard's pointy hat.

[@life-destiny1196]

Wither and Groom: you may be rotted, but at least you'll look good! Beacon of Dope: Makes everyone around you slightly more gullible. Arcane Date: adds an entirely new day to the calendar year. Hemiplane: it's the same thing, but now you get into arguments with linguists about it. Cone of Old: self-explanatory.

[@liamdockery8544]

0:14 The Return of the Sword

[@SapphireRose0205]

The way you talk about the invention of spells in the intro gave me an idea for an adventure (y'all are free to use this and write it however you'd like): a corporation of wizards buys/steals/forges the IP rights to every spell, threatening "legal action" (read: cruel violence) against any other casters who are allegedly "plagiarizing", and it's up to the party to climb up their skyscraper and fight pencil-pushing mages along the way to defeat the CEO and win back the magic for all. Different departments could even be themed around different schools of magic, like the illusionists department is a stealth section, and the conjuration department involves a portal puzzle, etc

[@isaacbenrubi9613]

In my games, I allow my players to get creative with their spells and even combine or expand them. This often comes at a great cost, particularly on a critical fail, but allows for some more flexibility and creativity. For example, I had a player who rolled a Sorcerer who loved Magic Missile and would use additional spell slots to change the damage type, add an explosive effect, or even fuse the missiles into one "Magic ICBM," as we came to call it. (Edited for grammar)

[@GinnyDi]

This is cool!! It's arguably easier to get creative with existing spells rather than inventing totally new ones

[@isaacbenrubi9613]

@GinnyDi It definitely is. Restriction can breed creative thinking and it's often very helpful to have a basic idea to work off of... as long as the spell isn't obviously game-breaking or ridiculous, of course. There will be no shotgunning fireball spells or Power Word Kill-ing an entire city because you "summoned an eldritch megaphone."

[@AnimeOtaku2]

College of Scribes Wizards get to change damage types on spells at second or third level I think.

[@MythicMachina]

Tactial Magic Missiles

[@jordanw2741]

One (free) suggestion that some can explore is looking to the UA Mystic for inspiration. It's a complicated class, but the psionic disciplines have interesting twists on classic spells. I got to play one in the last campaign, and it definitely reignited my love for casting. Broke the whole repetition of "at level one I better take shield, ok level three its time for misty step".

[@GinnyDi]

Great tip!!

[@MythicMachina]

Just... be careful. We banished Mystic to the shadow realm for a reason.

[@andy25100]

In the current campaign I am playing in, my wizard character has invented a new branch of magic. Door magic. Which is the ability to summon different types of run-of-the-mill doors. Single. Double. Stable. He has you covered for all your suddenly blocking line-of-sight, but in a way you can go through later needs.

[@MichelleNyxRaymond]

Ooooo….

[@lmt831]

Real fake doors, come on down and get doors that go nowhere and troll your friends

[@MythicMachina]

Just imaging them setting up a fake door like a Loony Toons gag.

[@Setuaro]

I feel like Artificer is just the perfect class for people who like to create their own spells as if you use a normal spell and don't really describe it as something else, you lose touch with the class. Whereas if you come up with new names and unique descriptions, it really feels good~

[@stardust5544]

I wholeheartedly agree, I love making new spells or modifying preexisting ones. Sometimes I just ask the dm if I can change the damage type to better suit my character’s aesthetic, or create something new together!

[@WestOfEarth]

I wish my players were that inventive! I've given them many hints and straight-to-the-point possibilities, but they can't be bothered.

[@davidhoward4955]

I laughed out loud and looked at my wife (who looked guilty) at your proclamation that your players don’t sully their thoughts with gaming between sessions. I feel seen.

[@PeteRepeatYT]

I’m playing a Wizard/Rogue in a campaign and I’ve worked with my DM to make a couple of spells through the course of the campaign, specifically ones that tie into my character. They’re really awesome - Cormo’s Compelled Duel will go down in history!

[@molliejonge3117]

I commented on your last video about how i was going to play dnd for the first time. It sadly got delayed by one day, but everyone had a great time and I think my dad had a really fun time being the dm 😁

[@GinnyDi]

Glad to hear it!! Hope you get to play another session soon 😊

[@lacey_moon]

"Altos can hold a pitch and a grudge" SENT MEEEEEEEEEE

[@khayyin359]

As a Bass, I'm cackling 😂🤣

[@lacey_moon]

@@khayyin359 I'm a soprano and fully believe we deserve all the hate we get 😂

[@khayyin359]

​@@lacey_moon At the height of my choir time, our bass section was really skilled, but being basses we spent a lot of time waiting while everyone else learned their more complicated parts. I distinctly remember me and a couple other basses singing along with the sopranos at one point, then purposely pulling them slightly off-key 😂 (we were buttheads 😅). Our choir teacher was impressed, but not impressed, you know? 😅

[@lindafreeman7030]

No lie detected! Do you know how many of us altos it takes to change a lightbulb? Only one, but I'm going to bitch and moan about how high it is.

[@lacey_moon]

@@lindafreeman7030 LMAOOOO I think the soprano version of that joke was something along the lines of "one to do it, and three others to watch and commend her on how it was done" 😂😂😂

[@lawsonpritchard1456]

Something to consider when inventing spells is how often creatures will resist them. If a damage type is more likely to be resisted, such as poison, fire, necrotic or cold then it should do more damage than one that isn't resisted often such as thunder psychic or force. Also certain damage types usually have saves associated with them, like cold or acid is usually constitution, lightning or fire is Dexterity, intelligence or wisdom for psychic etc

[@sethherdt6126]

"That's why I carry a sword" is my new favorite bit-always gets a bank out of me.

[@spo0pti304]

my experience of being a dm is mostly just saying "woah that's fucked, go on then"

[@seankennedy4548]

Great video Ginny. Totally agree with all the points you made on home-brew spell use. Like that you touched on old-school 1st edition spell creation. Back in the day I allowed players to use spells from the Great Net Spell Book and the Great Net Prayer Book. Nearly 2000 completely different spells from Cantrips through 10th level deity-level in effect. The players loved it, but you had to provide copies of the spell when handed out, as they did not have PDF files... just hard copy. 😀 There are a couple places on-line that you can still get a copy of them. It's great source material if you want ideas for new spells.

[@StinkerTheFirst]

As a DM, the idea of players creating their spells sounded terrifying, but now it sounds so much more interesting. Quest ideas, downtime activities, personal goals: so many possibilities. Also, thanks for the critique on VORDANIN'S BOOK OF SPELLCRAFT. I picked it up along with a few other things you recommended on DM"s Guild, like domestic D&D and the godly grimoire.

[@gedece]

one big idea about how to test a new spell is to introduce it in an ancient and almost crumbling wand, that every time it's used has a chance of breaking up. This let's you introduce the spell, test it daily and then take it away by the wand breaking if it's deemed flawed. I also introduced spell reskinning for a only ice wizard. I just said to her, pick any spell you like, treat is as if it's made of ice, and if it introduces any secondary effect by the spell element, change it to slow.

[@demetrinight5924]

I love reflavored spells. The picture in Tasha's Cauldron of Everything with Magic Missile shaped like chickens is one of my favorites. One of my players had a kobold sorcerer with a black dragon bloodline. He took all of his spells as acid based like fireball became acid blast. Also all his spells looked like he belched them out like a breath weapon. I had an elf wizard with bright blue hair that cast all his spell in a vibrant blue color. As a DM I enjoy giving out new spells as scrolls or wands. Or having a wizard or cleric learn spells by seeing them cast by someone else. All of your suggestions are great.

[@bercechillyfinger]

My sister loves your videos, keep up the great work!

[@vickieden1973]

My GM peppered the last game he ran with "spell augments"-variants of existing spells you could choose to cast in place of its usual effects-and "artefact spells", which were new spells with big effects that could only be cast once each between long rests. As I was playing a wizard at the time, these were my favorite treasures. The spell augment for lightning bolt to let me refract it off surfaces with trigonometry a set number of times became my Int 22 wizard's signature spell.

[@Cazzzz321]

Homebrewing spells (alongside HB'ing just about anything fr) is one of my favorite parts of being a DM. Allows you to tell a ton of storytelling with them and the process of learning them.

[@scoobydoo316us]

We sorta combine spells and increase them to do things outside of the normal guidelines. Strahds fog is an example of how come some people can do spells that are not really just a normal casting. But if you cast different ones. Create a fog. Cast a teleport/gate type spell and attach it to the fog. Add in a wish or two so that when people enter the fog, they are teleported to where ever you want. Like at the other end of the fog. So it looks like you didn't go anyplace except thru the fog. But really bypassed the whole city. This makes it where different classes have to work together. Using the set of rules given. We built cities years ago and used this as a guideline to come up with protection. Put it around your city. Only you can get thru. Anyone else not immune to magic can't make it. Can make small community safe. Cast illusion over the whole area. I been away for years but getting back into it. Now just need people to play with lol. I used to write a bunch of my own stories and DM but need to play catch up. Wish I didn't sell all my old stuff. I hate how the new books are wrote. Making you have to buy monster books or this or that to even play. Thank God for internet. Relearning the new strahd from the original. Or mad mage and not usable on it's own. Very few monsters with stats. Spell books are not given. Says SO and SO has their normal prepared spells plus ..... OK. what is their normal spells. It's pure greed and justifying it by saying how the books would be bigger and cost more. Then shorten some of it. Or write better with less filler.

[@foolcat23]

My two favorite spells of all time are from the Talislanta RPG: Rodinn's Spell of Instant Sobriety, which is great for sudden mischief to be had, and Rodinn's Spell of Sartorial Splendor; the well-kempt wizard won't ever leave home without it. Both are from a 3rd edition supplement called The Archaen Codex (old editions of Talislanta are completely free, btw).

[@MichaelKrinsky-hx1vu]

I've never played anything beyond 3.5 and never seriously tried playing as a spellcaster, but tying the invention of a new spell into a quest just sounds so good!

[@thetwojohns6236]

We have always done this. Back when I was doing the cons, we always left with stacks of photocopies of spells people made and circulated at the con. Sometimes, they needed rebalanced. Sometimes, they were awesome. We built on them and modified them. I expect in a way that wizards would actually do when interacting with other wizards in a social type setting. A few spells were even a hold my beer moment...

[@simonchadwick3735]

Homebrew spells are awesome and create such joy in players. My wife was playing a oath of ancients paladin in one campaign, but wanted a more nature inclined version of Divine Favour. So we made one that instead deals elemental damage instead of radiant. Years pass and the next campaign we play, two of the artificers break out this spell out of the blue. She still smiles when they use it.

[@collinkelch7764]

My DM and I worked out a home brew Hex for my celestial warlock called “Ire”. It causes Radiant Dmg in place of Necrotic and provides advantage on intimidation checks instead of targeting the choice of ability check. I love it!

[@me-42by42]

Some fun spells from Pathfinder 2e: Admonishing ray: a 60 foot slap that deals 2d6 bludgeoning damage per spell level, deals double damage if you crit on your attack roll. Agitate: the target must move on their turn or take 2d8 psychic damage, duration is based on how well they succeed/fail their saving throw, up to 4 rounds Inside Ropes: "Cantrip Duration 10 minutes. You pull a large handful of guts from your midsection. Removing these guts doesn't harm you. You can use the guts as 50 feet of rope to help you Climb, and they help attach you to a wall. You move half as quickly as usual while climbing with your guts (minimum 5 feet), but you can attempt a DC 5 flat check whenever you critically fail to prevent a fall. Other creatures can use your guts to climb like a squishy rope, but the guts don't help anyone but you attach to a wall. If you let go of your guts or your guts are damaged, the spell ends."

[@azukar8]

I'm running a campaign where the adventure location has been dimensionally isolated from Faerun for nearly 1000 years. This video helped inspire me to have enemies there use *mostly* spells from Vordanin's Book, since 900 years of divergent evolution would certainly have an effect.

[@jackms8790]

Creating new spells really is a blast, especially for your PCs, like a little gift just for them. It can really help personalise a character and a campaign, making them feel more unique

[@DerJagerlord]

Ginny in her Sword Era

[@GinnyDi]

One more video and it's a tax write off, yes??

[@VivaLaDnDLogs]

There's something about a girl covered in the brightest colors of the rainbow describing Hellraiser-esque blood magic that makes my brain happy. I love featuring spells from other source materials as lost or forgotten spells from earlier eras. Also, I'm gonna send a clip of your Sickening Radiance joke to my party. They've all become shellshocked from their experiences of my Warlock using it while they're in the danger zone. The argument I present is always "I trust you all to pass".

[@KHfanz]

One of my favorite things to do with ancient Liches is to use the spells/spell casting from previous editions of the game. EX: Lightning bolt does d6 damage per character level and bounces off of surfaces, or Haste: affects 24 creatures for 3 turns, and doubles their attacks and movement speed. Also, the best part about making a unique spell or spell(s) for the villain is to let the party learn them from their spell book when they finally stop them.

[@Mark-ki7ic]

While creating PCs for a 5e24 campaign the Cleric Half-Elf asked to change the Detect Magic as her 3rd lvl lineage spell to Pratfall from KPs Book of Ebon Tides. Since it fit perfectly with her concept for a Trickery cleric (and he's a good dad) the DM agreed. So as long as the spell isn't overpowered or steps on another spells toes utility wise import spells.

[@zephyrstrife4668]

One of the things I actually found myself doing was getting inspiration from the Mercurial Magic from Dungeon Crawl Classics. It gives some extra area or aesthetic effects to spells that aren't overpowered to add. Even creating magic the players can't learn helps give players a reason to look for NPCs. Spells cast in an ancient time that supposedly killed the caster to create a permanent barrier, ritual spells that require many casters like the Red Wizards of Thay.

[@wrlrdqueek]

I love alternate version of the core requisite spells. I have a Magus in a pathfinder game that uses Shadow Vortex, which is basically fireball, but looks like a swirling vortex of shadows and lightning and does half and half Lightning/Cold damage. Also, it's area is centered on the caster so the use-case is different.

[@smolsausages5361]

My drow wizard created a spell called Leolen's Blinding Vison. A 2nd level spell that gave a target blindsight for a time with a balancing drawback that you lost your normal sight for the duration. This was primarily a countermeasure for sunlight sensitivity. I ended up debuting the spell in a pvp with our fighter/barbarian who weilded a sunblade and a shield that cast daylight. Was pretty epic.

[@nicolegleason5727]

I made a spell for a mini-boss experience of the Final boss, and it’s just conjuring a gun (made of fire) (but balanced): they start a concentration spell that conjures a fire gun that shoots extremely fast. If they can keep concentration on the spell it summons the gun. The fire gun does 2d6 piercing damage to one target, and has 3 uses. It disappears at the end of their round. Applies fire damage.

[@shannon3315]

I was once given a Ring of the Grammarian in a one shot, and my friends still talk about me creating Thunder Rave, which was an AOE spell that turned the entire room into a loud and boisterous rave, requiring all within to begin dancing, and rendering enemies unable to attack due to the dancing and the sick beats (the party also could not attack, but we could maintain awareness and therefore dance our way out of the room). Everyone should know this kind of joy.

[@henryohenry1504]

Otto Correct 1st level Reaction Red ink (materials) When a spell is cast you can expend a spell slot to force the caster to use a lower level spell.

[@Rosemeadow403]

I've tinkered with making spells before, I made 'Hush' which is like a smaller reaction silence & 'Wall of Butterflies' which was a druid spell that had different effects depending on the environment they were in

[@ernesthakey3396]

Back when I was running AD&D games, I created a spell that was a variant of the popular 2nd level Web spell: Constricting Web as a 3rd level spell. It had all the normal Web effects...but the web strands would tighten around those caught in it, squeezing them for minor damage every round on their turn while stuck in it.

[@bryanmccrary139]

I physically winced when you mentioned your players "not letting a single D&D-related thought [sullying] their empty minds in between sessions," because *wow,* do I get that. It hurts, lass. Right in me little heart.

[@areformingamadon]

I have a nostalgia favorite from a group i played with ages ago. The wizard had created 'Inebriation' and 'Mass Inebriation'. Saved our butts when a big bad wizard flubbed his saving throw, and instantly became wasted. He was still too protected for us to hurt, but he couldn't hit us either.

[@daemonikkateylarii9731]

"Altos can hold a pitch AND a grudge." PREACH IT!!! Trying new spells is so much fun and adds so much variety to characters!

[@reallunacy]

I appreciate that it is now canon that Tenser is the Disney of the DnD realm.

[@GabeDunstonDraws]

"Altos can hold a tune, AND A GRUDGE!"

[@codahighland]

I gave the druid in my party (my wife) reskinned versions of Earth Shape ("Sculpt Wood") and Earthen Grasp ("Hand of Gaia") that worked on plants and natural unworked wood instead of on stone. The player's name is Ginny, too. Quite a coincidence!

[@SeidrSnowsong]

I have a house rule where players can expend a higher level spell slot, or 2 of the same level, to change the damage type, or a single *tangible* effect of a spell within reason. Ie: Spend 2 3rd level slots or a 4th level slot to cast "Lightning Ball" Instead of fireball. With repeated use of these modified spell versions, I let them tweak it slowly and roll arcana checks every few casts. Once they have either done it X times, Succeeded in a few arcana checks (Based on the spell or what they're changing about it) I make it a New spell. Then downtime spell crafting is always fine too. But players really seem to enjoy the "Modify my spell on the fly and then make that a spell I use regularly through practice" things.

[@metakarukenshi]

great advice, especially with the lich example. nothing is cooler than your players learning that the Lich has much more powerful spells forgotten to time but were commonplace 1000 years ago.

[@calvinwarlick8533]

Griz-Gog's Hot Flash. 1st Level Evocation. 30f AoE, 4d4 Fore Damage to target in that range. Plus 2d4 for for every level higher, one additional target for every other level higher. It wasn't a great spell, but it was a fancy bit of spellcraft, especially for a goblin tribe in the middle of nowhere. It focuses some of the heat from the entire area on its specific targets.

[@zephyrstrife4668]

10:17 correction, there are guidelines for it in the DMG. Generally speaking, crafting spells, scrolls, magic items and so forth are meant to be Downtime activities completed between adventures. Because everyone wants to manufacture magic items at the speed the Dovahkiin makes them in Skyrim, nobody actually wants to delve into the fact that magic item creation was supposed to be a slow, time-consuming process that emphasized having lots of time between adventures. People weren't adventurers because it was their job, people were adventurers because they could risk life and limb to not be broke while they practiced their hobbies.

[@FuncleChuck]

HUH, 6:48 is a series of words I did not ever expect to hear in that order

[@mikeesplace]

I'm running a game that has a lot of ritual spells, and I'm making most of them up on the fly. A lot of the rituals are actually hyper specific, tailored to the exact situation. They invoke symbolism to cause an effect, and I go into detail about what the casters have to do (such as in last night's game, tie a silver cord to a fae and then tie the cord to a padlock made of Cold Iron to bind it). They had to trick the creature into allowing this

[@fenrisulfhamr]

The Dying Earth books definitely personalize spells, and Dungeon Crawl Classics' version of the setting offers all sorts of weird spells like Arnhoult’s Sequestrious Digitalia (essentially empowered Mage Hand), Lutar Brassnose’s Twelve-fold Bounty, and Lugweiler's Dismal Itch. There are also quite a few quirks like mercurial magic (side effects), wizardly objurgations (signature twists), that vary from caster to caster, as well as misfires and corruption (when you cast the spell incorrectly- because you must make a spell check each cast). Taken together, DCC has my hands-down favorite magic system that could inspire adaptation into other systems if it doesn't win you over to it completely.

[@adameaton9826]

You could also look at the magic system in the game Kids On Brooms, which lets players create any spell they can think of by using several parameters (area of effect, degree of breaking the laws of physics, duration of effect, etc.) to determine difficulty.

[@samuelwilliams9751]

Talking about the mage’s own spells made me think that if a new spell appeared in that way, untested, whenever you cast the spell you also roll on the wild magic table. This would also work as a way to balance it if it is pretty powerful

[@scotthuffman3462]

My wizard bluffed his way into making a "Wizard's Promise" with another person and he ended up inventing a spell by the same name that holds someone accountable to a promise or they take psychic damage and the other person is made aware they broke their promise. ALSO, Transmuted spell! Take it on your Wizards with a feat! Every spell becomes 5 more spells!

[@life-destiny1196]

So like a mini-Geas? very cool!

[@Lordwhizzkid]

On that end bit as to how to let spells be implemented, I have a couple personal thoughts: If you want something that's a little more roleplay focused over RNG, instead of making them roll a DC, make it so that a spell takes time and resources, with more intricate spells taking more testing, which means more time etc. That way they may be more interested in searching for downtime opportunities and you can go through scenarios of testing. You can even bring RNG back and have rolls which'd speed or slow down the time depending on how it went. If you'd prefer to keep it to just rolls, instead of having a single dice DC, increase the number dramatically to say 57, or maybe even 80-100 for intricate spells. The player then must roll to add up to that number, with each roll costing resources and time. This way you could also get others to help in the process with Inspiration & Guidance to try and speed it up. Just a couple small ideas that could be fleshed out a little more.

[@myrdelgonway5119]

Making our own spells has been something my brother and I have enjoyed in our games.

[@emeny7752]

Wow my DM wrote Vordanin’s Book of Spellcraft!! it’s so cool to see you talk about it 🙌 I’ve been using some of these spells for years I hope others enjoy them as much as our group has

[@commonviewer2488]

Custom spells can be really fun and a personal touch to get you the slightest bit more invested. Discuss with your DM what spells you'd like to have. Their intent, if a reflavor would suffice, if not, start on that homebrew

[@jaxfrost7417]

I'm so upset that we got official spellcrafting rules in Playtest 5 for the 2024 PHB and we decided it was too op. It was the most thematic thing that was introduced and I loved it, only to see it taken away immediately 😢

[@macxdmg]

I have a bone to pick about your jokes, you rib us with your puns and it leaves me unsupported on the floor in a puddle of laughter. Thank you, genuinely, I am delighted.

[@arjenlaan4103]

Only time I ever tried my hands at spellcrafting (in AD&D2ed times) resulted in a 4th level spell called "Erai's Sphere of Affection", which was a 30 ft diameter area effect centered on the caster. "Every humanoid in the area must make a saving throw vs spells, or be charmed by everyone in the area who failed their saving throw. The caster is also affected, but may choose to make or fail their save without needing to roll." Needless to say, the spell has rarely been cast. Somehow, the whole idea of "let's all just cuddle and get along" tends to give way to all kinds of unreasonable emotions once recipients snap out of their respective charms. For 5ed balancing I would make it require concentration and for the charm effect to drop for individuals who leave the area of effect, one round after they do so. Or set the duration to 1 minute, like with Hypnotic Pattern. Which might justify lowering the level of the spell to 3rd. Still not a "good spell", but that's not the point of it ;-) Having a player having to test out their new spell in the field before they it can definitely be codified in a "stable version" might be fun, btw! Just the unintended side effects alone might make for memorable moments!

[@KiltedBlackDragon]

always test homebrew in a refreshing-arena. you test it with a lvl4, 10-to-all-stats, human, character. the DM throws creatures with CR 1/2 at the character, adding the next upper challenge rating after every fight, till the character dies struggling to keep up. the players refreshes to base after every fight. this method tests the output of the homebrew and allows for adjustments to it. if it is an item/weapon/armor, this method allows for understanding its rarity. for spells, it allows for setting the spell level.