How to Create Your Own Spells (Part 1)

check em out: www.worldanvil...
This is a tough topic to cover, jeeze. Know that it's only a template I'm trying to make, don't let my cornerstone of a video limit you, just do what feels right. Have fun.

[@alexanderjohnson1210]

Cower in fear at my homebrew expansion of soup-themed spells

[@brandondennis5166]

Cower in fear? I believe you mean tremble in anticipation.

[@cheesewizard8943]

Fireball but instead of fire it's scalding hot chicken soup

[@kylestanley7843]

@@cheesewizard8943 just a massive splash of cooking oil lol

[@thesouphour8426]

You are still no match for my toaster power!

[@tarandiamond]

Epithet Erased? 🤔

[@brendanschroeder7296]

"If it has more than 3 stages, it's too complicated" storm of vengeance: *sweats profusely*

[@kylestanley7843]

Or rather, *rains profusely* I'll go now.

[@patheronaetherson2860]

Or rather, *hails profusely*

[@Sparkle5fanboy]

Contagion: Is it getting hot in here?

[@thesouphour8426]

Druid: *uses storm of vengeance* Everyone in a 1 mile radius: I am in danger :D

[@jeohranalfhir8366]

Then I've got to delete all of my spells 😭🤣

[@dragonmaster613]

This is how we got those "Trademarked" spell. Melf's Minute Meteors came from Gary Gygax's son who played Melf. He wanted to cast Fireball in a smaller space.

[@polygon2745]

vynat draco wow, that sounds like the ULTIMATE NIGHTMARE.

[@hixel1268]

Melf was Gary Gygax's Son? Damn, u learn something new everyday

[@LSgaming201]

@@hixel1268 Mordenkainen is Gygax, Elminster is Ed Greenwood, most if not all of the important NPCs were PCs of the creators of DnD.

[@Nechrostriker4]

​@@hixel1268as was Tenser!

[@SunSun-sk4si]

1:06 ... Hold on... Gimme a second... Gotta make a fat Tabaxi Transmutation Wizard named Snowball who's obsessed with levitating everything.

[@TigerKirby215]

Putting that on my list of character ideas.

[@samuelevans738]

Ditto.

[@nopewipe8900]

At least now ya got graviturgy

[@irok1]

1) do magic 2) add it to the game 3) nerf if op, or just change level 4) good job

[@coyraig8332]

Changing level is a kind of nerfing

[@flamo2666]

Coy Raig no.

[@Kirikirikiru]

5) P R O F I T

[@wickederebus]

@@flamo2666 yes, it increases the cost, for the same effect.

[@CritScratch]

"Snowball the far gravicat" is now in my spellbook

[@harryrichardson4224]

would you like to add "snowball the far gravicat" to your favourites.

[@maddoxWolfe]

Harry Richardson yes

[@harryrichardson4224]

@@maddoxWolfe "snow ball the gravicat" has been added to your your favourites list.

[@Conservative4]

Colonel's Chess Turntable. Level 3 Transmutation. Pick a center point within 75 ft. The floor, ground, or standing surface immediately rotates in a 25ft diameter disk 180 degrees. It cannot affect bridges or any object that would become 'disconnected' if it rotated in place. Any character or monster standing firmly within the disk will now be facing the opposite direction, on the opposite side from the center point. Any character caught straddling on the edge of the disk (such as the 8 diagonal squares in a square combat floor), makes a DC 15 dexterity saving throw or is knocked prone. Any creature that succeeds this saving throw can decide whether it wants to move with the disk or stay in its present location.

[@BobSmith-cg2ek]

Me: Makes a lightning spell My party wizard: UNLIMITED POWAHHHH

[@Funkin_Disher]

ConfectionaryCanine83 so witch bolt, but good

[@JohnSmith-kb4re]

lightning magic only exists to quote sheev change my mind

[@oibruv3889]

@@JohnSmith-kb4re I was gonna make q joke but I just couldn't 'do it' (get it?)

[@BobSmith-cg2ek]

@@Funkin_Disher Why isn't witch bolt good then, because every other person i've met that's mentioned it has given glowing reviews?

[@Funkin_Disher]

ConfectionaryCanine83 www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?587387-Fixing-Witch-Bolt Is a good start, tons more threads on it over the years tho

[@FictionRaider007]

The bard in the first D&D group I ever ran a game for insisted he take Illusory Script. He's an experienced player and DM himself. I asked him repeatedly why he did it. What was the secret usage for this spell that was so vital he chose not to take dissonant whispers? One day he told me he'd taken it just to see how much I'd freak out about him choosing it. He did, however, use it once to amazing effect when his character had been rendered mute for a week by a cursed orb.

[@CreepsMcPasta]

I think a segment on choosing and balancing spell components could be good for us especially sweaty nerds

[@jakesgenuineanarchy5955]

Holly shit dude!

[@learncat8771]

@@jakesgenuineanarchy5955 A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one.

[@jakesgenuineanarchy5955]

@@learncat8771 I mean, I knew he played, he did a few games on the dungeon runners podcast, it’s just surprising to see somebody actually looking into their own stuff.

[@jakesgenuineanarchy5955]

@Dash Kamryn Confusion

[@PanZbychu09]

Woah...

[@buboniccraig896]

I made a spell where you can give a magic middle finger that glows in red light for a split second, and anyone who sees it gets super pissed off at everything. It usually ends in them punching the person next to them.

[@kylestanley7843]

That's actually pretty clever lol. Especially if you manage to subtly use it in a non-combat situation. Imagine getting two guards to start randomly attacking citizens "for no reason".

[@MainAcc0]

Amazing timing Mr. Runescape I've literally talked about this with my DM last week

[@JT1698]

>Runescape Boi n u h

[@snackfood109]

Are you gay?

[@oakclarke3976]

@@snackfood109 I mean, presumably.

[@starblade8719]

So you’re gay?

[@artificernathaniel3287]

Spell: superhero landing Jump+thunderwave Bada bing Bada boom

[@DyrgeAfterDark]

Thunderstep, from Xanathars guide.

[@MentalVideographer]

@@DyrgeAfterDark But with the damage at the other end.

[@hostiusasinhostilityhostil7853]

...you're hoppin' off the walls.

[@padalan2504]

This still doesn't make Jump useful at all

[@Sparkle5fanboy]

@@padalan2504 It does if you thuderwave every-time you land after jumping 30 feet in the air

[@sonidophore9100]

I remember playing with my little sister and spicing up her first character (a wizardWizard) by letting her choose from a list of comedic spells. She beat the first big encounter by making her enemies sneeze once. The sneeze doesn’t even do damage on its own. It was perfect. When she becomes more powerful I might let her have an arthritis spell, or something similar.

[@kylestanley7843]

This is so clever lol

[@DyrgeAfterDark]

"Altering Devil contracts " HOLY SHIT did you just offer up a Can of worms for anyone Bold enough to try.

[@Funkin_Disher]

INT save or 'Read the fine print'

[@Doomroar]

He just did!

[@gnomechewer1351]

Bold of you all to assume only the players will use the spell.

[@patheronaetherson2860]

^

[@GuardianTactician]

Pretty sure there is a clause in devil contracts for the signatory altering the contract in any way.

[@jamescollette1296]

I recommend also covering homebrew rituals, invocations, and metamagic as well. You'd be surprised to see how many people ask for stuff like that. Usually it is pretty minor, but is a good idea to cover regardless.

[@thesouphour8426]

James Collette A metamagic that changes the damage type would be cool

[@buttonmasher7615]

Good and thank you. Not too many KZbinrs tackle the monumental task of creating guides to creating homebrew content.

[@TheMaskedArcanum]

I cast erratic hammering

[@samuelevans738]

Have you made a chair yet?

[@AlanMitreBeast]

Phuk! my life LOL! All I remember is that super hammer from smash brothers

[@samuelevans738]

@@AlanMitreBeast wait... what about if you cast erratic hammering with a golden hammer?

[@IrvingIV]

I'm making a bed. . . The _SLOW_ way.

[@TheMaskedArcanum]

@@samuelevans738 Sorry I was making inventory for an ikea, now you can finish your evil ritual

[@jamesbell7725]

I’ve been making home brew spells for a long time now and good god PLAYTEST YOUR SPELLS I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH

[@christiandavegutierrez475]

How do you playtest spells? Do you just give them to players in your current campaign and adjust as you go along? or do you make a separate game just to playtest? I'm kinda new to this so I'm curious.

[@jamesbell7725]

Christian Dave Gutierrez personally I label my homebrew spells as “volatile new discoveries” from the arcane magic school and/or temple my players eventually run into, so I give them the ability to use those new spells but retain the right to change them to balance the spell at will as GM, but I also let the players pick a spell to replace that homebrew spell if they aren’t happy with the change (let’s say I decide it’s actually a 5th level spell instead of 4th then they get to either pick an entirely new 4th level spell and replace a 5th level spell they know or just pick a new 4th level spell and drop the homebrew)

[@Epic_Vanguard]

Yo, you should do a how to use world anvil after this! I was having trouble with it about a month ago, and would love to get some help, and while supporting my boi doing so!

[@jackielinde7568]

I made a spell and entered it on my world. What was the issue you were having? Maybe I can help? Here's my spell: Identify Dead www.worldanvil.com/w/paths-of-the-adventurers-crazyzonie/a/identify-dead-article

[@hmcloud8487]

I haven’t check the numbers but: Chicken legs Transmutación 8th level Casting: 1 hour Duration: 1 day A building of your choice sprouts legs. You can mentally command it within the range of a mile. Has X stats, gives x damage and travels x miles per x. So yeah, you can have guns in dnd and also summon mechs.

[@KikinCh1kin]

Wait isnt this just the houses with chicken legs that actually do exist? Mech? Nah fam just a temporary chicken house. Also I would put a size limit because you could just walk up to the kings castle and carry it and the king off.

[@snailman7989]

this is kind of like a witch Grand Hex in pathfinder called Witch's Hut Witch’s Hut (Su) Effect: The witch can animate a hut, small house, covered wagon, tent, or similar construction as an animated object. The hut can be of up to Huge size (approximately 15 feet by 15 feet). The animated hut’s hardness increases to 8 and its hit points double. The witch can give the hut the following commands: guard (the hut watches for trespassers within 120 feet using the witch’s Perception modifier and screams if it spots any), hide (all entrances are hidden by illusory wall spells and locked with arcane lock), and move (moves at speed 60 on giant bird or bone legs as directed by the witch, even obeying commands such as “follow me from 100 feet away”). The hut remains animate for 24 hours, until she dismisses it or she animates another, at which time the hut stops where it is and reverts to its nonmagical state.

[@hmcloud8487]

I dint know it was a thing! Still, I would like it to pack a bit more of a punch. Like a castle instead of a house. It also looks goofy as fuck XD

[@georgiitokarev9627]

@@hmcloud8487 Well, It's quite common for slavic mythology to have a crone living in a hut with chicken legs

[@chienfeu]

Trasmutación being the Spanish for transmutation, so it implies wearing a sombrero

[@fortello7219]

Make flavoring it's own 10 minute video please. DMs need something to share with their players about why they should do this

[@Neiot]

Flavoring?

[@gaminreasons8941]

@@Neiot Think of it as how a thing feels in-game. What does it look like? What sounds does it make? Essentially it's the non-mechanical bits of a thing that make it feel a little more special. Reflavoring is changing the existing flavor and perhaps minor mechanical changes so that it makes sense.

[@leonardodavinci8313]

Yes to this! I've only recently started doing this but it makes every character feel unique!

[@TheKartana]

Gaseous Tongues is kind of broken, because it doesn't have a save or specify willing creature. You can make someone incomprehensible for an hour.

[@andrewknorpp9415]

Isn't that kind of cool though?, there a ton of spells if your smart are op.

[@Oznerock]

Thats why you give them to the players and then edit it based on how they abuse it. But don't edit midsession, it'll just piss them off.

[@brandondennis5166]

Awesome. I gave my paladin - devoted to Selûne- a custom item for him to wield. A ring which, once a day, for five minutes, lets him unleash darkness all around him in a 60ft sphere. Anyone in this area percieve the world as if it were night time, with a full moon overhead. While in moonlight, he gets plus two to attack and damaging roles while wearing the ring.

[@RobinNashVideos]

Is using the ring a bonus action?

[@brandondennis5166]

@@RobinNashVideos Yep!

[@isectoid9454]

Does this ring rule them all?

[@jeohranalfhir8366]

@@isectoid9454 idk, but it surely brings them in the dark and binds them

[@szabelmistrz1738]

"Don't piss off cleric and paladin at the same time" Me: some poor bastard = I'll go Sorcerer Divine Soul. Yup.

[@JohnSmith-ex8iw]

HERESY The correct term is "The Holy Souly", trademark Tulok the Barbarian. Please don't sue me Tulok.

[@kaedenjohnson2591]

Wizard: Finally gets a healing spell Transfer Life: does damage to the caster Wizard: O_O

[@ConstantChaos1]

I think a good idea is to give them healing spells but make them higher level than the equivalent divine spell

[@diegobenavente5433]

This is so useful! I'm actually excited for your flavor topic. I usually reflavor thing and the players love how unique they feel despite casting a normal spell

[@ymmijx6061]

cloak of positivity. duration: 10 minuets whenever you are struck by an attack recover 1d6 hp. after this spell has healed you 10 times it ends.

[@Alexaflohr]

I'd put that squarely in 3rd level right now. It heals an average of 36 hp over 10 rounds, with the caveat that you have to constantly being hit. I would personally change it to be able to be cast on others, last 1 minute (making this a combat only buff), and either saying "if the target is restored to full hit points the spell ends" or "the spell ends if it restores a maximum of _____ hit points on the target".

[@Alexaflohr]

On second thought, if this is Concentration, can be cast on others, and lasts 1 minute it's functionally equivalent to Healing Spirit and is pretty balanced at 2nd.

[@channelremoved32]

what school of magic? what level?

[@loreman2803]

Ice magma: fire a ball of blue magma that solidifies on contact but freezes your target

[@twistedjoke6636]

So Sub-Zero's Ice Ball

[@sirreginaldfishingtonxvii6149]

_Request to classify Larry as a keter-class memetic hazard has yet to be approved by the 05 council and is still pending_

[@Runesmith]

Request to classify Larry as a keter-class memetic hazard has yet to be approved by the 05 council and is still pending

[@vodamiinurl1337]

Here's some spells I whipped up off the cuff as an exercise in Homebrew, feel free to use them if you want or give me feedback. I might post more later. Sky fingers: Cantrip [wizard/sorcerer/warlock]: (somatic/focus) 1d4 lightning damage + 1d4 lightning per spell level after 0, but requires one dedicated action at 1st - 3rd levels, and one full turn at 4th level or higher with chance to stun. Backstory: a seemingly basic spell which quickly ramps up in power, but with no clear origins Stasis Healing: 3rd level [paladin/cleric/warlock]: (somatic/divine focus)/ /6th level [wizard/sorcerer]: (somatic/component) On touch, target becomes paralyzed for 3 turns with no saving throws, but receives 3d6 healing per turn and produces a 5ft circle of protection against status effects around the target while paralyzed. Backstory: a spell developed in an arcane kingdom in lockstep with an identical divine spell. The original intent and primary functionality of the spell is to ensure that the critically injured survive long enough to receive proper treatment from a qualified individual. (I have had more than a few characters bleed out and a spell like this would have been incredibly helpful) Inordinate exsanguination 3rd level [wizard/sorcerer/warlock]: (vocal/somatic/component) Ray of energy which dealing 1d8 bleeding damage for 3 turns Backstory: also called bleed out, Bleeding Ray, Ray of Cuts, and Ray of Bloodshed. This otherwise standard spell is typically used by cruller sorcerers for less than noble intentions and as such is even outright illegal in certain religious countries.

[@sanguineaurora8765]

GJ mate. Been waitin for this. Never forget to compare your homebrew spells with existing spells. If yours is almost always preferable, then it is either overpowered or should be a bit higher levelled.

[@olive6942]

just made one distort 9th level transmutation create a 10 ft sphere of magic changing energy. anything in the sphere can be changed however you want. the sphere can be moved on bonus actions and has 15 feet of movement. if a creature enters the spells area they must make a con save, taking no damage on success or taking 8d6 force damage on a failed save, if it drops an enemy to 0 hit points and the enemy starts their next turn in the sphere they will instantly die and whatever affect the caster chose for them covers their body. casting time: 1 action range: 90 ft duration: up to 1 minute of concentration components: verbal, somatic, material (a vial of liquid silver worth 1000 gold pieces and a pendant made out of diamond hanging on a silver thread which the spell consumes) edit: spelling and less op

[@brandondennis5166]

You should go more in depth with it. What is the magic changing energy? What does it look like? What are some examples of how things can be changed within? Are the changes permanent after the spell ends? Etc.

[@olive6942]

@@brandondennis5166 it is permanent and changes everything ever, it looks like a ripple in air sort of like what a hot car or fire does, anything inside it can be changed it anyway

[@olive6942]

@@eliot5716 I never said how did the vial is

[@Aplesedjr]

Seems a bit crazy. It’s almost like a power word kill without the hp restriction and with a save if you drop it on a bunch of enemies.

[@olive6942]

@@Aplesedjr I fixed it a bit

[@phinexman]

Enrich weapon (upgraded sprectral weapon) enchantment school comp:V,S casting time: instant duration: 10 minutes range:30 feet lvl:4 Appon cast, the weapon glows with an essence of magic. the weapons looks are copied and enhance the blade by 3D8+spell mod. arcane damage. The essence can be summoned outward using a bonus action to do so. Using concentration checks at the start of the round, the weapon can move freely. Adding on spell levels will raise die by 1,up to 3 times.

[@krackencrusader403]

now just play eldritch knight fighter.....5 attacks...…. x that action surge.....cast at 5th level...…40D8 added to that attack round or have wizard friend do it for 60D8 (7th level)

[@phinexman]

@@krackencrusader403 i like your thinking. cause i just picture a sword swinging like helicopter propellers.

[@recowabunga7200]

2:16 - schools explained VERY FAST

[@Alexaflohr]

Right of Passage is actually crazy OP in the right situation. Imagine the first thing people think of using this pell for: making contracts with devils. Add a clause that reads "the fiend whose signature resides on this contract grants the greatest amount of magical and physical power they are capable of providing to the client. This remains in effect even if this contract expires or in the event of the client's death". Congrats, your second level spell just created a god. To make this work, you will probably need to change the spell description with the addition of some boundaries, probably significantly more limited than Wish. Also, you will need to add "this spell does not work on spellbooks" unless the ability to completely render another wizard's spell useless and effectively erase a known spell from them is a feature you want to be included.

[@thepip3599]

A spellbook isn’t a contract. I think you’re right about the rest, though.

[@a.l.macdonald8071]

Nah, devils have truesight

[@puppyguard2689]

4:24 Wait, 9d4 has an average of 22.5, not 18. 7d4 has an average (rounded up at least) of 18 though. Edit: Good video otherwise, thanks for letting us watch it!

[@matthewvonreighner5762]

1d4 has an average of 2 so 9x2 is 18 average dmg

[@olive6942]

2*9=18 I think that is how math works but I am not to be trusted

[@BearGamerful]

@@matthewvonreighner5762 1d4 has an average of 2.5 it doesn't play a part if its a single die but when it s multiple it makes a difference]

[@tobistein6639]

@@BearGamerful Correct! Since there is an equal chance to roll 1, 2, 3, or 4, you take the mean of those possible outcomes and it comes out to (1+2+3+4)/4=10/4=2.5. If you roll Xd4 you'll generally find that the expected value of the sum is about 2.5*X.

[@dannymish573]

additionally, 3d10 has an average of 16.5

[@fattytan1377]

[Jarate] Level2 Enchantment spell Casting time: 1 action Class: Ranger,Wizard,Cleric, Paladin. Range: 10 feet Magically make a blob of yellow liquid that increases the target's damage taken by 2d4 and minus 1d6 on saving throws for 3turns , uses Wisdom as saving throw, on success the spell has no effect.

[@bankasai3120]

You can’t understate how hard balancing is. I tried making an entire sorcerer spell list for melee casters, and by god was it hard. However, a falcon punch feels really good to blow up a man’s face at the end of the day.

[@alexhuk7353]

Cantrip- retrieve (bonus action) Within 60 ft, hold out your hand to levitate object you are attuned to and pull it towards you. I think it’s cool for wizards who lose their focus or for magic melee character to feel like Thor.

[@jacktimson2401]

My first time at Denny's was with my late father and a couple others we were on vacation with. My order was more or less the only one they didn't botch, but it was still sub par. And my Dad usually had a good experience there, so he was bitterly disappointed with how it had gone for everyone.

[@darklordofsword]

I'm playing a Kobold Warlock whose patron is a massive, interplanetary, sentient potato. His spells all flavor everything as spuds.

[@invalidentidy1526]

okay here's my spell (based off hunterxhunter) Bungee gum, 4th lvl, touch, evocation, Somatic, 1 action(casting), at will (affecting stick, shrinking or giving slack), reaction or bonus action (touching it to other people) you create a non-visible point on your finger of "bungee gum" this point is about 1 inch in diameter and feels like a hollow rubber ball. You can use a bonus action to touch this to someone and, if you will it, it will stick to them, you can now move and there will be another point, of the same size and properties, on your fingers. In between these two points is a rope of the same properties, at will you can give it slack or decrease to size to pull it in (it has the strength of your spell casting mod's stat) the maximum size is 10*spellslot level+20. You can also touch the second ball to another object and detach it from your finger, as another action you can make another ball up to 2+every spell slot above 4.

[@jacobvanveit3437]

This is my favourite topic. Magic! The measly level 1 wizard feels constricted with his abilities, never reaching far enough to accomplish his tasks, having to reach for compromise with the magic gods. As the wizard gains in power that binding, constricted use of magic seems to open up and chaos starts to pour forth. By the time they are arch mages the power is so complex and powerful that even our minds can’t comprehend its power!!! I liken the use of magic as the development of AI. The more we uncover AI the more complex it gets until at some point it surpasses our ability and mind. Love the topic and it’s what keeps me up at night as I DM my group of level 17’s through a mind warping world only they can control.

[@joshwist556]

Next several videos How to make a homebrew spell part 2 How to make a homebrew race part 1/2 How to make a homebrew class archetype part 1/2/3 How to make a homebrew class part 1/2/3/4 How to make a homebrew world part 1/2/3/4/5 How to make a homebrew game based on the DND 5E system part 1/2/3/4/5/6 How to.....

[@Alexander-vg5qf]

How to... How to do how to videos!

[@farmazonlost]

HowToBasics

[@ulmafar-6172]

The Egg spell remains the best one yet

[@Forgetthereality]

This world anvil advertisement had me drooling i never knew i wanted it till I saw all those tools 😩

[@ShotzInTheLight]

2:03 "Wizard that dealt radiant damage" Wizards with sunbeam, crown of stars, or sunburst on their spell list: sweating profusely

[@mateusfontescruz1103]

Logan Advice: Pick the Right School of Magic Matt Mercer: CREATES A NEW SCHOOL OF MAGIC

[@BlueNEXUSGaming]

You can cover Larry in the 2nd video! Just have a Face-to-face with Larry and interview him (through the magic of editing) and be like "Larry, my viewers wanted to know what School of Magic you primarily use, because I covered that last week." and Larry would... be Larry.

[@RyuSpike]

I homebrewed a fox race and one of the subraces is based on kitsune. I gave it a feature that allows them to use spell modified versions of preexisting spells: Dancing Lights and Disguise self. Dancing Lights allows them to create fox fire while Disguise Self allows them to disguise themselves as objects as well with their tails sticking out whenever somebody makes a successful insight check. After watching this video, I am now wondering if I should just turn these two modified spells into full blown spells exclusive to my fox race. It would probably give me more freedom into what the spells can do and reduce the amount of information players will need to write on their sheets.

[@felixrivera895]

I made an illusion spell at 9th level that does the "matrix" thing to someone. It's not enchantment because the point isn't to force someone to believe something or act a certain way, it's about circumventing the target's sense and presenting them with something they Want to see. It could be easily enchantment though. It's got specific interactions with divination/healing magic and specifically interacts with priority over the Dream spell. There's a saving throw up front to succumb to the spell, and it requires 3 consecutive saving throws of either sucessful or failed saves for the spell to be either ended early or perminant until otherwise ended. It's complicated, probably oberly complicated, but it does it's thing and requires a 9th level slot

[@diablosaurusyt9669]

9th level multiple targets = 14d6 Meteor Swarm *Laughs*

[@Alexander-vg5qf]

Meteor Swarm be like: fourTEEN d6? I though you said fourTY d6

[@isectoid9454]

Take a look at fireball. By its damage it should be level 5.

[@thesouphour8426]

That’s why you should fear the *ROK*

[@yellowjacket8416]

I made my own sells by creating a greedy god who lends you his power temporarily for a high gold cost

[@Uberphish]

Nice to see WorldAnvil steadily getting out there on more and more channels! Stumbled across the place myself some months back, and it's been a godsend for offloading and organizing my various worldbuilding ideas.

[@DurealRa]

It would be nice if you would discuss the in game portion of spell invention - the work done on the part of the character. There's not very many guidelines of when that is appropriate, such as what level it can begin, how long it takes, how easy it should be or shouldn't be, etc. You could also discuss how the process could go IC differently, such as a wizard using formula or experimentation using monster parts or something vs a Cleric undergoing a pilgrimage in the footsteps of a long dead figure of their faith in order to perform a similar miracle, etc.

[@shigyosenpai]

I love your voice and your blink and youll miss it humor, honestly might be my favorite dnd youtuber

[@blegh2780]

What if I just want a spell to summon a spectral jazz/mariachi band?

[@oeiskiecleveland4793]

No mortal man should have this much power

[@olive6942]

11th edit: that is the spell level, it would be very very stronk

[@oeiskiecleveland4793]

@@olive6942 acceptable

[@blue-bg5dg]

Just take Unseen Servant and give them an instrument.

[@olive6942]

@@blue-bg5dg do you underestimate the power of jazz/mariachi?!

[@StefTheBold]

I'm new to DnD and well I've always wanted to make my own spells so thanks for the guide

[@ferociousmaliciousghost]

That is when you make Super Murder Ball Death Kill.

[@giant1033]

A Random Rock halo kill ball?

[@ferociousmaliciousghost]

@@giant1033 No, it is from XP to level 3's video. I think the video was called When your players kill your BBEG too fast

[@dustinbesser4780]

_yells over the fence_ "creeping cold" laugh riot right there

[@THEFRISKIESTDINGO]

It is hard to imagine anything more powerful than a patient and dedicated 5th level Necromancer. Twice a day he casts animate dead until he’s got 4 skeletons. The next day he animates them and has them climb into a box, he locks it, and starts again. In a few months he has a storeroom full of undead resting quietly in their nice boxes, faster if he levels up. More spell slots? Upcasts. He’s dedicated to honing his craft and building his army. He can select his favorites and give them wands of magic midsole and half-decent armor, but eventually he has far more than he can subjugate in a day and the storage room expands to multiple buildings, a cave, an abandoned mine, he has so so many. He takes his R$R time to relax and have some drinks with the party, but he also catalogues where his various stashes are, he arranges it so he can locate a box and open it remotely, and he has a troop of his servants expedite the process and find more bones. Imagine what you could do with what amounts to an undead minefield. Need to go attack someplace? Launch boxes of undead at them. They’re not serving you, but they’ll do what they do on their own. All that to say that no matter how powerful a spell, monster, BBEG, magical creature, sentient object, or god us, it can always be beaten by a crafty and patient party and a pile of 10-foot poles.

[@Locaneo]

I made Phantasmal Killer's polar opposite, "Phantasmal Lover"

[@brandelgastfergandill1757]

A version of mordenkainen's sword that just is a toggleable sword/wand. It doesn't fly around, it doesn't fight for you, just an arcane blade that you can whip out in dire straits. I'm envisioning a tournament full of fighters and barbarians and a wizard with mage armor and arcane sabre steps in the ring

[@Splincir]

We have used a ton of homebrew over the last 6 years or so. Most of it is very simple stuff, just reflavoring existing spells to have a different damage type to match a characters theme, or creating some basic spells that work mostly like existing ones with a little twist. Like our cleric who is pretty much a pure caster and took 2 levels in druid. He would pick up shillelagh. Since he is a circle of Stars druid and a cleric focused on healing and stars/twilight, we flavored shillelagh to work on martial weapons and do radiant damage. We also have a variant of booming blade that instead of taking damage on movement in the next round, it deals dmg if the one hit by the cantrip attacks you or someone within 5ft of you. Its been really fun to really tailor some of the characters spells to match their vision of how their characters would cast the spells.

[@UltimosGabriel]

Finally a video about it. You're the best

[@ConstantChaos1]

Im making a spell that dampens charisma because... well im playing 3.5 and things got out of hand and now im too beautiful to behold

[@eruditecaptain3117]

It's worth mentioning that, due to how statistics works, using more small dice may allow you to raise the minimum and maximum damage without changing the average compared to few big dice, but the most important thing about using more dice for damage is that it weighs the odds in favor of the average. For every die you add to a damage roll, you add a exponential amount of possible results. For example, 2d10 has an average damage of 11. However, you will roll an 11 roughly 10% of the time, but only roll a 2 or a 20 roughly 1% of the time each. Compare that to 5d4 which has an average damage of about 12. You'll deal the minimum/ maximum damage only 1/256 times each, but you will deal average damage of 12 about 15% of the time (you'll also do 13 damage just as often). All this is to say that using a few big dice can have a lower minimum than several smaller dice, and they'll do the average amount less often, but they will do the higher amounts more often. Just worth considering in damage dice decisions.

[@eruditecaptain3117]

This is basically the same math as why 2d6 is not automatically better than 1d12. I should have just used that example, I had to find a special calculator to help me with the stats on 5d4. Since I found it though, did you know that 8d6 (fireball) has a 8.09% chance of dealing the average damage (28) and a chance of dealing maximum damage (48) so small it rounds to 0.00? Isn't math fun? (The calculator is called anydice)

[@geoffreyprecht2410]

Just watched your ad for World Anvil, and before I even watch the rest of the video, I have to say you've convinced me to throw some money their way. I was considering it earlier, but I wasn't quite sure if it was worth my money. Seeing that they're willing to sponsor Runesmith, one of my favorite content creators and worldbuilding resources? That shows me that this company is worthwhile! (It helps that it'll be a good way to actually keep my thoughts organized while I'm writing stories and campaigns in my original setting.) Unless you're using a homebrewed version of Suggestion that works via KZbin, I'd say your ad worked!

[@AngryWattson]

The amount of art in your videos I recognize from MTG is making me think I play to much lol

[@jakeschreiner9348]

Fun cantrip idea Sinus irritation Components: somatic, material You point at a target they must succeed on a construction saving throw against spell save dc or they sneeze If they are concentrating on a spell with verbal components they have to make a concentration check against your spell save dc Components: a flower or pinch of spices

[@corywack6742]

This reminds me of a campaign my friend ran. The entire campaign was a fetch quest to find 12 items based around the 12 astrological signs. Our group had five or six players and one dm. Each person in our group that had a different astrological sign so it worked out in each of our characters got a special item that matched the players astrological sign. Mine was called Aquarius Breath, which was a spell that's like Cloud of Daggers on steroids. I forgot the damage dice for it but I had a secondary effect if I rolled a Nat 20. When I rolled a Nat 20 he it summoned a storm that boosted lightning, thunder, and other strom based spells and damage. The catch is it can only be used once a month in game. Another cool thing in the campaign was that there was a 13th item that bound alot of campaigns after that. It was The Spear of Destiny, losely based on The Spear Of Longinus from Christianity and Neon Genesis Evangelion and a magic spear from a past campaign. EDIT: my second item in that campaign ended up being the Scarf of Sagittarius, it was mainly a scarf that gave buffs to rolls.

[@CitanulsPumpkin]

One easy source of inspiration for more spells in 5e is the 3.5 spell compendium. Both editions share all the same classes and have those classes focus on the same stuff. The biggest difference is 5e replaced all the complex math with "roll with advantage", "add a d4 to the roll", or "double your proficiency bonus. " Any of these can replace any instance of "add +X to a roll" to easily update a 3.5 spell for 5e use.

[@anthonyniemiec9409]

As a pact if the fiend warlock, that rite of passage spell scares the shit out of me. That’s some wish level power right there.

[@leo15twist]

Trying something: Chaotic Shards: 6th level evocation (sorcerer/warlock). Range: 30ft. AoE: 10ft cube: You create 1d4+1 shards of chaotic elemental energy, that deals 1d6 damage. The targets must make a dex save, or take the full damage on a failed save, and half damage for each type of damage. For each shard you roll a d6 to determine the damage type. 1 - fire; 2 - cold; 3 - electric; 4 - poison; 5 - acid. If you roll a 6, you create 2 new shards, for which you roll another d6's. Rolling a 6 again creates 2 new shards, and it goes on indefinitely.

[@Mechagodzilla128]

Dagnabbit dude. I was drinking when you started blaring "SPOOKY SCARY SKELETONS". Almost spat water everywhere.

[@archieforsyth5211]

If you are going to make a spell remember the average of 1d4 is actually 2.5 because there is no ‘0’ on the die (1+2+3+4)=10. The average is then 10/4=2.5 which means the average of 9d4 is actually 9x2.5=22.5 and the average of 3d10 is actually 3x5.5=16.5. As you increase the dice number the average gets smaller so be careful when calculating averages to make sure the spell is balanced!

[@mikevides4494]

The rulebooks even remind people of this when calculating spell damage: Runesmith was using the "averages" given for taking the average on Hit Dice, which are rounded up by 0.5 to make whole numbers. So d10 Hit Die classes can take 6 HP per level after 1st, because the average of a d10 is 5.5 (not 6) - they round it up to the nearest whole number for Hit Points.

[@SPSJ173]

Ima going to make a character who's special abilities consist of dabing, yeeting, default dance, and T posing. I'll name this character meme lord which is also it's occupation and race.

[@thomasjenkins5727]

"you can't use this here. You needed to use it on the phone." "Oh. Ok. Have a nice day. I won't be eating that, or paying for it."

[@marcusblacknell-andrews1783]

I’ve tinkered around with the School of Necromancy, and created a namesake spell: Blackspell’s Rotten Luck!

[@michelebenedetti7507]

Oh As always when I learn a new mechanic I will think about it for hours on end

[@goldenfloof5469]

The only spell I made that I'd actually use is basically just "You tell a tree the description of someone or something, and for the next week, if something matching that description came within a radius equal to the trees height, they'd have to make a dexterity check at disadvantage or the branches would tangle up around them. The branches would then just stay there, taking the new permanent shape, but could be cut away like normal branches."

[@kinas1027]

Lmao, that creeping cold spell is an actual spell I've made before. Well, similarly. It's called Taxon's Creeping Cold on DNDBeyond, and is basically an area of crawling ice that incapacitates and damages

[@jan_harald]

instructions unclear, opened up a portal to the plane of memes, the airhorns and cacophony of everything is preventing everyone from closing it...

[@theoptimistichippo8185]

I made a bard spell, it's called "Harming Tune", you can get it at 8th Level. You make a performance check, if you succeed, a wave of music fires out of your instrument (or your voice, if you're that kind of bard) and slams into whatever you targeted, dealing however much damage you rolled. Now if you failed that performance check, it slams into the nearest party member.

[@BookWyrmOnAString]

My spells: Judgement 2nd level evocation Components: V S Duration: instantaneous Range: 30 feet Deal 3d10 damage to a target whose alignment is opposite to yours i.e. you are chaotic, they are lawful or you are good, they are evil. The damage type depends on what alignment you are that they are not: radiant for good, necrotic for evil, fire for chaos, and cold for law. If your alignments conflict twice e.g. chaotic good and lawful evil, pick one of the two damage types. Swole 3rd level transmutation Components: V S M(workout equipment or anything high in protein) Duration: 10 minutes Range: touch A willing creature you touch becomes incredibly buff for the duration. Their strength is now 20 and they automatically succeed any strength checks or saving throws. (You can create variations on this spell for all six ability scores)

[@IbraheemM98]

Talk about lore implications and story beats to traverse, like an entire adventure centered around finding a spell that allows you to taste that one very delicious Gumbo with four different types of rice that no matter how far you search they just can't get the spices right!!!!

[@LuigiBones]

it'd be cool to see something about how to better homebrew divination, abjuration, or detection spells specifically, seeing as they serve a very different role from all the other spell categories (i know detection sort of fits in with divination but i feel it can overlap better than standard divination spells)

[@theclocktower3258]

Idk if it'd count as a spell but I had a neat idea for a monk ability inspired by the game Asura's Wrath. Basically a monk could use their action on their turn and spend 4 ki points to sprout 2 additional arms from their back. The additional arms are considered magical for overcoming resistance and immunities. When using your bonus action to make an unarmed strike with the Martial Arts feature, and your additional arms are not holding anything, you can use them to each make an unarmed strike. The arms are tangible, albeit illusory in appearance, and do not hinder movement in any way. They can be used as a normal arm and they have a full range of motion. While this ability is active you have advantage on athletics checks that require the use of your arms, advantage on grappling, and your carrying capacity doubles. The affects of this ability last for 10 minutes or until dismissed as a free action.

[@Funkin_Disher]

Putrid Haze 1st level transmutation (druid, warlock, wizard) 1 action 60 feet Concentration up to 1 min Target one fresh corpse you can see. The target corpse begins rapidly decomposing, spilling forth toxic vapor in a 10 foot radius. Any creature that enters the area or starts its turn in it takes 1d10 poison damage and are poisoned until the end of their next turn, or half damage and not poisoned if they succeed a con save. If the spell affects the corpse for the entire duration it is fully decomposed. A moderate or stronger wind disperses the vapor and ends the spell. At higher levels: +1d10 each spell level

[@kylestanley7843]

This is fucking genius oml. Imagine how useful that could be in setting up an ambush.

[@Earth_angel_abigail]

Dont watch this if it's your first time DM'ing and your already overwhelmed 😭😂

[@davianda5267]

“Illusionary script is bad!” Makes right of passage that does the same thing.

[@adamxei9073]

Winded. Second level spell. Components are semantics and material. The components are a hand fan made by a druid or tempest cleric. Upon casting the spell the caster must choose a Target within 30 ft of them. On a failed dexterity save compressed air slams into the chest and back of the target. Taking 2d8 magical bludgeoning damage. If the target then proceeds to make below a five on a constitution save. They gain one level in exhaustion.

[@foodice11]

I would rename "Right of Passage" to "Addendum" "Right of passage" sounds like a spell that would make a barrier have a wooden door that lets you through. A buoyant, strong and flammable wooden door.

[@liminalheadspace5624]

This was great timing as I have been trying to make new spells for several weeks.

[@TobiasTHolmes]

I handed one of my players a level 1 wizard with illusory scrip on session one, we started by role-playing the start of the mines of phandelver module in Neverwinter. It is a powerful spell, creativity wins.

[@bsantini3616]

*Me screaming as I make another 100 spells*

[@taylorgoldman130]

Best homebrew spell- Conjure Chicken

[@RichardDuryea]

I’m writing a one shot where the players are trapped in a wizards library that’s under attack and they have to create a spell from scratch to defeat the BBEG.

[@nooneinparticular5256]

So here's a weird one that popped into my head, not tested or anything, just a general idea: Sphere of Noise: (Probably evocation, or illusion) Create a small, handheld object (like a metal ball), that telepathically radiates its effect up to 30 feet (maybe 60), and lasts for up to 6 hours. The object can be thrown, to cast its effect elsewhere; covered up, to muffle its effects; put in an apparatus, to amplify and project its effects (kinda like a bullseye lantern). Can also be destroyed, or dispelled by the caster (but requires a save). The longer the noise object lasts, the heavier it becomes, and the harder to physically destroy. Effects of Noise: All alarms in range are triggered, sleep or rest is impossible, all creatures are alerted, and spellcasters will recognize it if they've been hit by it before, even if it is of a different sound. Creatures that feed on psionic or magical energy (like flumphs and gauths), will be drawn to it. Whenever someone attempts to cast a spell, while under its effect, they have to make a concentration save, to make sure the spell will even start. If it fails, the spell is not cast and all consumable resources (sorcery points and material components) are still consumed, except for the spell slots. Mystics & Psionics have to make 2 concentration saves for the spell to work. If 1 is failed, the spell is wasted, along with the psi points, just like above. If both are failed, the mystic takes damage equal to the amount of psi points put in. Necromancers, and those with charm controls over others have to make a concentration save every action, or lose their control. This happens if either the controller, or the controlled is under the effect. Cantrips are completely unaffected by Noise. So, the idea for this is kind of a last-ditch/level-the-field spell, as well as a sort of counter to mystics. The fact that it's a spell in itself, means that it's gonna affect the person who cast it in the first place, so its best for teams physically fighting a powerful spellcaster. So, how does this sound? Probably would need a lot of reworking, or it already is covered by an already existing spell. But, I'd like to know, at least.

[@corpesmen1830]

literally been making homebrew spells like crazy this past month because my group just wants to use their own unique shit instead of whats in the book so this is timely help