Top 6...Best Classes for the Magic Initiate Feat | Nerd Immersion

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While I was struggling with how to originally make this video, I eventually decided to forgo the traditional Top 10. Instead, I ranked the six classes that you can choose from for Magic Initiate in order from what I consider least powerful/useful to most powerful/useful. Obviously your mileage may vary based on what your goal is with the feat, but I was talking more high level.
Introduction 00:00
Sponsor 02:13
Top 6 Uses for Magic Initiate:
6. Sorcerer 04:26
5. Bard 09:13
4. Cleric 13:06
3. Wizard 17:31
2. Druid 20:41
1. Warlock 24:35
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[@NerdImmersion]

Check out Those Who Wander: www.kickstarter.com/projects/1536638253/those-who-wander-0 Also you can get custom art for $150, full illustrated and immortalized in the book! Thats not a bad deal at all!

[@Lvl4Henchman]

I.

[@fiapritchard905]

Hey brother quick question idk if you’ll see this but I’ve decided to take Magic Initiate as a Paladin I’ve decided on booming and green flame blade as my cantrips I’m just so stumped about what spell I should get if you see this plz halp

[@IntegerDevourer]

If you are looking for Hex, I say Fey Touched might be better than magic initiate since you get misty step and a stat increase.

[@rb2358]

Definitely, and that’s true for Dissonant Whispers as well.

[@williamings773]

It also has the added bonus of choosing your spellcasting modifier. A huge plus.

[@GramGramAnimations]

I actually feel the best part about this feat is that you can continue casting the spells you get using spell slots. Great for any class that happens to have extra spell slots handy

[@00blaat00]

Nice! But I think Magic Initiate is the only way to get both E.Blast and Hex in one go?

[@johnkronz7562]

Definitely better for martial characters who do not care about cantrips.

[@zendikarisparkmage2938]

Don't underestimate the Find Familiar spell from the Wizard class. There's no Intelligence required, and you can cast it once and get the utility benefits forever. And if the familiar dies, no big deal. Cough up the 10gp to cast it, and you can bring the familiar back once per day.

[@logancuster8035]

Shocked to see this wasn’t on the list

[@DoktorApe]

I feel like Find Familiar is the reason why Wizard belongs at #1 on this list.

[@konradianknight]

@@logancuster8035 He said he was skipping ritual spells cause you're better of choosing the ritual caster feat for that.

[@NerdImmersion]

Thank you!

[@jamesbennett5466]

Since ritual caster feat requires 13 in the attribute, but Magic initiate doesn’t, this may be the only way to get Find Familiar

[@Straven93]

I like taking the feat with human variant so I could play a lvl 1 eldritch knight. Just really helps avoid the well suddenly I can suddenly use magic narrative.

[@odin3141]

You could flavor it as your character has been practicing their spells up to level 3, if you plan on taking that subclass. Hell, one time I played a rogue who consistently tried to make pacts with any entity that would listen, all the way up to 9th level when I felt it was time to multiclass into warlock (and of course he was a total Stan for his patron when he finally got there)

[@brettbuterbaugh934]

I like this with lvl1 Paladin. I take the feat in sorcerer and I can get a good selection of ranged combat. Though the melee ones synergize well with combat until you get to 11th level. ahh, choices. Edit: Shield or mage armor because always being ready or always having a one-use "oh-noes" button is great when you don't want to multi-class. Flavor it as once a day divine protection

[@AzkuulaKtaktu]

Especially if the DM will let you trade it for another feat later

[@dragoninthewest1]

Paladin: takes Bard magic initiate and picks up Vicious Mockery Paladin next combat: unleashes a brutal fire-and-brimstone sermon on their foes

[@Vyke348]

I know you mentioned Mage Armour, Disguise Self and False Life. They're all great spells but I think if I was buying the feat for them specifically I'd be more inclined to take Eldritch Adept instead and take them at will as my invocation. Of course if you have a good use for the cantrips as well then they have value still... but it's worth weighing up what you want more.

[@KatanaKamisama]

One thing I noticed that you failed to mention, is that melee characters with access to a fighting style might want to pick up Fog Cloud to generate advantage with Blind Fighting. Picking up some utility cantrips in addition to this could make a martial character much more interesting to play.

[@StevenBryceWroten]

I like Druid a lot for Shillelagh, as a way to use a weapon with Wisdom. It provides a character build that isn’t normally possible. A Wisdom focused Ranger or Monk is fascinating to me, and it can also be good for a Cleric. Getting another Cantrip and 1st level spell along with it is just bonus.

[@steveaustin2686]

If you get to use a Druid focus for Ranger spells (Tasha's), then Shillelagh for a quarterstaff is really useful. Per the DMG, a staff magic item is treated as a quarterstaff unless otherwise specified. So it should be easy to get a DM to treat a 5gp Druidic Focus Wooden Staff as a quarterstaff as well. Can't turn a 2sp quarterstaff into a focus though. Then the Ranger and Druid ALWAYS have their focus at hand and can use Shillelagh on it to attack with it. Since the damage for Shillelagh gets bumped to 1d8 for the quarterstaff, then a nice DM may up the versatile damage to d10, like the Longsword, Battleaxe, or Warhammer. A Monk with Shillelagh and a quarterstaff is really useful at low levels. It's not until 6th level that a Monk's unarmed strikes are consider magical for overcoming resistance or immunity to non-magical weapons. And Monk weapons are not d8 until 11th level.

[@engilaru]

If you don't have a good casting stat, some of the better spells to pick up would probably be Bless, Shield, Shield of Faith, Hex, Healing Word, Feather Fall, and Expeditious Retreat. For cantrips, if you don't have a good casting stat you can go for Guidance, Booming Blade, Mending, Message, and any of the purely RP cantrips such as Druidcraft, Thaumaturgy, Prestidigitation, or Control Flame.

[@odin3141]

In retrospect I'm not very surprised warlock got #1. The way they cast their spells is based around having useful one-use tools in their belt, so magic Initiate would fit very well with their list.

[@Faircrow]

Warlock is designed for having one spellslot at level 1, so I guess this reason alone validate it's position in the video

[@oniminikui]

I tend to choose Druid when I take Magic Initiate: Mending and Guidance/Produce Flame, and Goodberry.

[@Grey_Shard]

monk with magic initiate cleric using Inflict Wounds. "Omae wa mou, shindeiru."

[@kojopilgrim9550]

underrated comment

[@Marhathor]

Putting a comma there is like saying: You are already. Dead.

[@orocamion]

Can't wait to see you in the new studio once it's finished!

[@fortello7219]

Honestly I think more people should put stock in mage armor. Firstly almost half the classes want it. Any class that prefers light armor to medium does since it's better than studded leather. Druids can't usually get good medium armor that isn't metal so they might want it regardless. Monks with low wisdom (possibly ones that start with 18 dex and 14 wisdom even) can even make use of it. Not to mention the benefits for animals and other companions. Familiars, mounts, and even NPCs can benefit from it. Combine that with 2 utility cantrips like mage hand, message, or minor illusion and it can be a flat buff.

[@ryansprenkle6356]

It's definitely the best option for a once a day spell, considering it lasts for 8 hours

[@steveaustin2686]

1:33 Rituals as the 1st level spell from Magic Initiate only really work well for Bards. Cleric and Druid have to have a spell prepared to be able to cast it as a ritual, so not really helpful to take one with Magic Initiate, as they can just prepare their own spells that are rituals. A Wizard can cast rituals that are in their spellbook, so if they take a ritual spell that is on their spell list, they can write into their spellbook. So a way to have 7 spells at first level, which is only a minor consideration for a Wizard. For Bard, they can cast any Bard spells that they know that are rituals, so a Bard taking something like Unseen Servant to have a stage hand free once per day, plus whenever they have the 10 minutes to cast it as a ritual, can be useful. Unseen Servant can be used like a stronger Mage Hand, especially as it lasts for 1 hour without concentration. An Unseen Servant can pull a garden size cart that weighs up to 150lb, including gear.

[@selendrasama44]

When I take magic Initiate, when I Look at it for a character with a 13 in int or wisdom, I go for buff spells or spells that don't require saves or attacks. Guidance, bless, shield, light, prestidigitation, druidcraft, etc. Or use it to flesh out spells known such as magic Initiate: warlock for a paladin, or magic Initiate: druid/cleric for a ranger. Thrid option increasing spells know Bard / Sorcerrerr / Warlock, or Druid / Cleric since they share a casting stat.

[@Dennis-vh8tz]

Each character can only concentrate on one spell at a time; therefore, using feat like Magic Initiate to give a non-caster a once a day concentration spell can be particularly powerful. For a Life Cleric taking Magic Initiate Druid for the Goodberry spell is an excellent option as the Life Domain healing bonus is added to each berry.

[@PlaneswalkerTARDIS]

Now I kinda want to make a Leshy in 5e using the new heritage system with my feat being magic initiate Druid. Have the plant boi grow 10 Goodberries a day, have poisonous thorns with Primal Savagery or infuse a weapon with Shaleighleigh, and Guidance for good measure.

[@SilverFoxR]

One of my longest running characters I played was a half-elf Artificer (early UA) and at the time, our DM was pretty flexible. So, I got Magic Initiate: Warlock as a feat (he let me just use my primary spellcasting modifier... or I might have messed it up... don't remember) to balance out the fact that the version of Artificer I was using had no cantrips. So, he'd fire Eldrich Blasts for single targets and toss vials of my Alchemist's Fire/Acid (which we ruled had a splash damage to the adjacent squares to the impact point as they were kind of lame on their own) for AoE. Overall, though, he was much more fun to role play... but he did a decent job as a backup spell caster and healer. The funny thing is that his lv 1 spell was Unseen Servant. His reasoning was to have an invisible assistant (he was essentially a mad scientist). I used it once in the campaign to amazing (and hilarious) results with a bead of fireball.

[@TheZandaz]

Hex would be good as you can give disadvantage on an ability check, so a Paladin could choose strength/dexterity and grapple better

[@DashunicornII]

Don't forget one commonly overlooked thing about Hex, the fact that it gives disadvantage on ability checks involving an attribute that you get to pick. At first glance this may be a negligible ability because how often are you making an ability check in combat? (Which is usually when you're gonna use this thing). But in a niche situation, say your barbarian is grappling an important target, you can make it slightly easier for your barbarian to hold on to them by casting Hex on the grappled creature on either their strength or dexterity (whichever is preferred by that creature). Again, kind of niche use but it's a very nice bonus to the already great Hex.

[@nathancoomber7359]

A fun character build I did a while ago was a human fighter with almost no strength or dexterity but a capped wisdom with shillelagh from druid initiate. Even dipped over to barbarian for a bumped AC and it still worked because shillelagh isn't concentration so he could rage as well.

[@Hesauce]

Can't wait for Hex- I mean Warlock to be number 1

[@Faircrow]

yep, I had no doubt

[@logancuster8035]

Something that I think should be given emphasis is that your character learns that spell. Meaning you can then use your characters other spell slots, if they have them, to cast that spell. Gives extra bang to some of the options. Shield as a known spells for a Cleric, Bard or Druid for example is very powerful because they have very little to do with their reactions otherwise.

[@Zarsla]

That's not how it works, it only happens when you pick a class you can cast with ie a sorcerer picking sorcerer, or a wizard picking wizard for magic Initiate. See Sage Advice Compendium dnd.wizards.com/articles/sage-advice/rules-answers-october-2017

[@chrisharvey1285]

While I get your point on being able to heal being superior to just stabilizing someone, what if its your third combat of the day and you've already burned your heal? Infinite stabilization has some serious value. I got artificer initiate randomly and that was the clear choice of cantrip to take.

[@AzraelThanatos]

Specific subclasses have other things that can alter how well the feat works. Divine Soul Sorcerers taking it for their own class is extremely useful there since it lets you grab from both other Sorcerer Spells and the Cleric list as well. Arcane Archer Fighters get a TON from Wizard due to Int being a major stat for them (And Artificers have taking it with Wizard as a no brainer). Several class choices also vary heavily by your main class(es) and what stats you're using. A Monk can benefit a whole lot more from Cleric or Druid with Magic Initiate than a Paladin. And some of the ritual spells can work well for different characters even if you aren't using them here. Find Familiar can easily be both extremely useful and flavorful for characters, the hunting hawk or owl in the hands of a paladin is something that would be quite interesting, and the Paladin with his owl could make for an interesting sign at things for the character or the bard with a raven...and even then the Raven works great for flavoring a paladin as, essentially, the Knight of the Raven from 3.5...and is very atmospheric in a Ravenloft campaign. I'd played one and picked up the special raven from the AL Ravenloft campaign. It also requires less effort for the 1/day familiar resummon ability there.

[@carsonlake3842]

My favorite use is to get the booming blade cantrip on a swashbuckler. Close with enemy, sneak attack w/ booming blade, free disengage from swashbuckler, retreat. Enemy has to move toward you to attack and then it takes the additional damage from booming blade.

[@jayt4863]

Was hoping this was more a top picks for what classes/subclasses to take magic initiate. Currently playing a war cleric and will be taking this feat at lvl 8 to get booming blade, green flame blade and I’m struggling with which first level spell to pick. The few I have in mind are absorb elements, shield, find familiar and gift of alacrity (if my DM allows that last one).

[@rlwrgh]

Possible follow-up video best classes to use magic initiate.

[@NerdImmersion]

Yeah there's been enough asking for it

[@kevineldridge9452]

Variant Human Rogue Magic Initiate (Wizard) Feat (Booming Blade / Prestidigitation / Find Familiar - Owl) Flyby Help action from Owl means Advantage when Attacking Custom Background (aka Adventurers League Compliant Faction Agent) One Rapier for Melee / Two Daggers for Ranged Swashbuckler Archetype at Level 3 Ring of Protection (+1 AC & saving throws, attuned) from being a Custom Background (aka ALC Faction Agent) when you hit Tier Two in Adventurers League game play (around Level 5)

[@pandapruitt2542]

I am having a hard time figuring best one for an artificer mainly concerned with utility and not really as much damage

[@seanmcgcostumes]

At level 4, I decided that it'd make sense narratively for my bard to start learning necromancy, as well as using Magical Secrets to get more spells that help in fights. Of my cantrips, only Vicious Mockery helps in a fight and the spells that help in a fight were, I later realized, super situational. So my bard has been figuring out necrotic spells; he's currently level 7, and when we next level up and become level 8, I'm taking Making Initiate: Warlock so I can take Toll the Dead, Chill Touch, and Hex. Hitting an enemy that's already been injured with Hex as a bonus action and then hitting them with Toll the Dead is a fantastic combo, and Chill Touch having a range of 120ft will be *incredibly* useful as a very squishy bard and the PC with the lowest AC, haha. So for me, Magic Initiate: Warlock will prove to be helpful in filling out gaps in what was my first ever character build at the time, as well as a way to develop his narrative. Magic Initiate is, without a doubt, a feat I will *always* consider taking when playing a spell caster.

[@curtisbrown547]

cleric cantrips are pretty strong, in and out of combat. resistance and guidance come to mind. shield of faith is great in combat, just giving you a flat +2 to your AC with no downside, other than concentration. obv, find familair W/ wizard is also a tempting choice, especially if your a class that doesn't get it, having the ability to get a flying little drone that you can cast spells through is incredible

[@gregkirby9059]

i have a divine soul sorcerer i am picking magic initiate fest but what is better bard or warlock?

[@briguy_81]

I was playing around with a Variant Human Wizard build were I took Magic Initiate as my free feat and choose more Wizard spells to start with. The primary reason I thought this was a good idea was the free casting of a 1st level spell of your choice. I thought a free Mage Armor everyday would be worth the feat alone. I’m not sure it is worth it however. What do you think?

[@ViccVegaa023]

Makes sense to me. Wizards get 6 1lvl spells to start with if I remember correctly. But in my mind spells like Mage Armor and Shield are must haves for Wizards. So Magic Initiate really is allowing you to get a bit more choice in your initial spell selection.

[@Sku11King77]

I'd disagree with this pick. The strength of magic initiate is gaining something your class wouldn't usually grant you. I'm sure a free mage armor is useful at lvl 1 but once you have more spell slots that feat is largely useless. If you really want mage armor though, perhaps consider eldritch adept, since one of the options are to cast mage armor at-will, and then when you level up and get more spell slots you can switch the invocation out for something else

[@SkarmoryThePG]

One aspect of Sacred Flame that doesn't get talked about - It ignores cover, yes, so does every single cantrip that targets a save which isn't Dex.

[@henriklyckholm245]

Thx for a great video. pls do more of these.

[@oscarmadslien4853]

What's not really thought of is that, while the ritual caster feat is good to get rituals through, the utility of getting find familiar AND two cantrips is often more useful and ASI efficient especially on non-arcane trickster melee rogues where advantage is more important than a flat d6 extra

[@jesselee4453]

I will watch your stuff. :) Long as you do your best to bring us something worth watching, just don't degrade yourself dude. Much love.

[@WexMajor82]

Command is a bard spell too

[@jerrybeard8995]

I agree with the top 2 they were my difficult choice when I took it. Almost went Druid for goodberry since I have a neg. wisdom mod, and it would allow me to do healing and feed the party. But as an Arcane archer the use of Hex was more useful for me and having EB is a good emergency "oh crap I'm out of arrows" back up is nice too.

[@chrisweed8171]

You could even flavor the casting like Hank from the D&D cartoon - shoot the EB as if they were magical arrows

[@clarkside4493]

I always prioritize Magic Initiate (Wizard) for an Artificer. They desperately need those extra cantrips as many Artificers will want to keep _mending_ around pretty much all the time, plus it gives them some spells they can use even without their tools handy.

[@UnofficialDustyn]

I put it on my artificer instead of bumping my int at level four and don’t regret it at all.

[@clarkside4493]

@@UnofficialDustyn I did the same. My Battle Smith took _green-flame blade, toll the dead,_ and _find familiar._ It's been very helpful.

[@UnofficialDustyn]

@@clarkside4493 I went message, mending, unseen servant for my artillerist. Tied it into the backstory about how he ruined some artifact the mage he was studying under had spent years researching. He also cause a large fire in his local tinker’s guild because I enjoy playing easily goaded klutzes.

[@clarkside4493]

@@UnofficialDustyn Xamodos wanted a bat to help him stay aware of approaching mind flayers as he had plans for eventually descending into the underdark to kill more mind flayers like a good githyanki.

[@UnofficialDustyn]

@@clarkside4493 quality character design. I have a order of the scribes wizard in another game who hasn’t used find familiar yet simply because I can’t come up with which familiar I want it to mainly be.

[@finalfantasy50]

witch bolt should also be of great value for the free first level slot since you can keep rolling the damage for free when you hit

[@BrazenBard]

Heh, bards clocking in just over sorcerer... I play a Drow Wild Mage. Picked the Magic Initiate Feat early on. What'd I pick? Why, Prestidigitation ('cause I needed the utility; hadn't picked it from the Sorcerer list), and, oh hey, Vicious Mockery and Cure Wounds. My alcoholic sorcerer might not be aiming any ranged spells at you any time soon (disadvantage in daylight, and all that), but he can and will hurt you in other ways... and patch you a bit together afterwards, if he thinks it appropriate. :P

[@clayisahottie]

Damn: I didn't realize that Jim's Magic Missile is such an upgrade compared to regular Magic Missile.

[@NerdImmersion]

It can be depending on how well you roll

[@Florian0799]

I want to take cleric spells with that for my Forest Land Druid. But i am not really sure which spells to use apart from spare the dying though i could need some good non AOE damage spells. There is also no cleric in our party and the only other healer is a moon druid so mostly at the frontline. Any Suggestions .o.?

[@AssassinLupus7]

Level one spells from a cleric for good non-AOE damage? Just to make sure I'm reading you right. Inflict Wounds is 3d10 necrotic damage in melee. Guiding Bolt has range, 4d6 radiant damage and the next attack on that target has advantage. As for cantrips, Sacred Flame is a DEX save or 1d8 radiant damage. Toll the Dead is a WIS save or 1d8 necrotic or 1d12 necrotic if the target was already below full HP before you cast it. Both cantrips get more damage dice as normal. For the flavor, I would take Inflict Wounds and Toll the Dead, just because you could treat it as a druid trying to rot them to return them to the earth. Mechanically, though, the only one I haven't used myself yet is Toll the Dead. I can tell you from personal experience that the other 3 have been consistently useful for me.

[@Florian0799]

@@AssassinLupus7 thank you for your answer. I personally also thought of word of radiance i mainly am tied between that cantrip and sacred flame. It is just i do not want ro grill my party with my spells as well.

[@AssassinLupus7]

@@Florian0799 Main reason I didn't mention Word of Radiance is because I haven't used it, and unlike Toll the Dead, I haven't even seen others use it. I don't have even second hand experience, so I didn't want to comment on that one.

[@kylephelps7817]

Dissonant whispers also comes with Lore Bard

[@splunky5156]

Personally I've been thinking about getting Find Familiar, Greenflame Blade, Booming Blade on my forge cleric.

[@nickm9102]

I am partial to MI Warlock with Hex EB and minor illusion. So make a hiding spot, throw hex down and Advantage EB with hex. Not sure if RAW this works but also Hex on a magic Missle with an Evocation Wizard (1d4+1+Mod+1d6)× 3 to 11 bolts. That is dragon killer especially if your DM is the roll 1d4 and that is all bolts type. I would have you roll the hex die per Missle

[@unholyxeras8182]

magic missile doesn't make an attack roll though so RAW wouldn't apply the hex damage

[@nickm9102]

@@unholyxeras8182 the spell says when you hit with an attack and magic missle says each dart hits a creature you can see (auto hit). Magic missle is technically an attack. So it could be considered legit but I might be hesitant on an evoker plus there is the issue of magic missle can be 1d4 rolled and counted for all bolts but Hex calls for a new die on every hit so could easily could end up with a lvl 6 Magic Missle being (1d4+1+MOD×8)+8d6. That said I wouldn't count on it working everywhere.

[@unholyxeras8182]

@@nickm9102 magic missile is not an attack. It doesn't use an attack roll, and at no point in its description is it described as an attack...spells that count as an attack will say that they are a melee spell attack or a ranged spell attack but the word attack appears nowhere in magic missiles description

[@nickm9102]

@UnholyXeras JC puts it in the same catagory as an effect. So by the definition in the PHB I am wrong it is not an attack. I do think that that is really wierd as shield stops MM and directly improves the mechanics used against attacks but I didn't make the system.

[@unholyxeras8182]

Oh I agree it's weird...and I think ultimately the DM would have to decide whether to allow it cos it makes sense or stick with RAW. I think personally I'd want to allow it because it feels right but because in low level play it would open the door to potentially game breaking amounts of damage that can ruin early encounters at a fairly low cost I probably wouldn't allow it (at higher levels it not really that strong as EB will deal more damage with it unless you use a 3rd level slot or higher, at which point it's fine for it to hurt that hard cos you're burning higher level slots)

[@CaitSith87]

Find familiar , good berry, toll the dead? Gfb for martials?

[@CaitSith87]

I have the feeling that were a lot of bad suggestions included sorry usually a big fan but this list was really bad.

[@jakebuss2381]

Wizard at 3 is a CRIME should be at LEAST 2 behind Warlock

[@joepellicci8518]

Calling it now fighter number one because hex and action surge

[@joepellicci8518]

Nvm I misunderstood

[@steveaustin2686]

Pssh, that's easy. Top Ten classes to take the Magic Initiate feat in rough order. Druid, Sorcerer, Warlock, Bard, Cleric, Eldritch Knight Fighter/Arcane Trickster Rogue, Paladin, Ranger, Monk, and Wizard. A lot of those will take their own class for a bump in spells. Or take the 1st level spell from another class with their spellcasting modifier that is also on their spell list. Then they can use it with spell slots if they know it or prepare it, for those that prepare spells. Monk takes Druid for Shillelagh at low level, unless they get really lucky with the stat roll and want something else.

[@kiko2129]

I´m playing a bloodlock (Bloodhunter(Order of Profane Soul)/Warlock(Pact of the Tome)) and Variant Human at lvl 1 took Magic initiate from the Warlock so.......i kinda have all the cantrips a warlock can have......XD.......yeah XD...........XD

[@nerfherder5211]

I agree guidance is incredible. In fact so good that players are actively punished for not shouting GUIDANCE inbetween every sentence on roleplay. On most tables I have been on, someone having guidance has actually been annoying and not using it such a big difference that it frequently got in the way of actually playing/immersion. Thus I recommend banning guidance and letting the players enjoy playing the game instead. Or just limiting it to few times per day or similar so it does not get in the way all the time. Asking if applicable etc is an immersion breaker.

[@nickm9102]

I think Artificer initiate was another way to dump on AL. They denied it until Tasha's and then they made rules that only allows using Tasha's in season 10 which has Icewind Dale and maybe 3 AL modules. I really feel that between that and the lockdown AL seems dead.

[@Damnationization]

M y issue is you talked about 1st level spells. If you take this FEAT as a non-caster that's a bad idea. I think it's more important to look at Cantrips in that case.

[@riccardocorradini6713]

wouldn't it be cool to homebrew the feat to be usable with your own spell slots? it's something that all newer similar things have and it feels like an unnecessary thing...

[@christianadams211]

idk how u can value Wizard that high when its ability score doesnt match anyone else's, I think they are the least likely to be taken cause it will require another stat every time when most people pick a class has the same spellcasting ability score. Druid and Warlock are clearly the top but Bard and sorcerer are more common than u rate them because they use the super common Charisma score.

[@daroxes6399]

No need for intelligence with how expansive and great wizard spells are - Booming blade, mage hand, find familiar are prime examples. Find familiar alone makes wizards the best MI pick in my book.

[@christianadams211]

@@daroxes6399 You got me with Find Familiar... I would say that is the instance it would be worth it; otherwise if ur a Charisma character Sorc is better option or Wisdom character there is likely better feats to take, like the new fey and shadowfell ones from tasha's.

[@trapical]

My man here just put out an entire video on Magic Initiate, and forget to mention Find Familiar? It's the most versatile spell in the entire game, as your Familiar can single handedly give you more utility than several entire classes.

[@NerdImmersion]

I did...at the start, where I said I wasn't going to talk about it....

[@jamesmattila-hine1133]

You did forget a spell it's basically unique to the wizard find familiar

[@NerdImmersion]

At the start I said I wasn't doing ritual spells

[@jamesmattila-hine1133]

@@NerdImmersion I genuinely didn't realise it was a ritual spell never mind I withdraw my point

[@steveaustin2686]

@@NerdImmersion You do get the two cantrips as well. Could be useful for an Eldritch Knight Fighter or Arcane Trickster Rogue to have some spells at first level. A familiar does make a nice scout and can provide the help action to get sneak attacks if the Rogue doesn't have anyone else to do that. Find Familiar is a conjuration spell, so neither Eldritch Knight nor Arcane Trickster would get access to it. The two cantrips earlier than 3rd level would be why you would take Magic Initiate, especially since they have a small number of spell slots, so the more cantrips you get, the better.

[@jonathanshapiro8047]

Just make a paladin with eldritch blast

[@dakdur1126]

My DM limited me to players handbook, I want my Magic Initiate to be the Charisma based, because I’m a Charlatan Warlock with Pact of Chain already

[@steveaustin2686]

If you make another Warlock, take Magic Initiate: Warlock feat for the extra 1st level spell and 2 more cantrips.

[@ViccVegaa023]

You'd think Chromatic Orb and Absorb Elements would be both unique to Sorcerer but no...

[@artemisknight8721]

Wizard..... Cantrips vary, but Shield is supreme.

[@Agroveb]

You skipped find familiar, possibly the most important part of going with wizard!

[@konradianknight]

He said he was skipping ritual spells cause you're better of choosing the ritual caster feat for that.

[@Agroveb]

@@konradianknight yeah but FF is definitely the exception to that rule. There are so many builds centered entirely around taking magic initiate wizard to get the blade cantrips and find familiar. It’s also not like he didn’t mention other ritual spells at least in passing

[@konradianknight]

@@Agroveb Yeah agreed, it's a great choice. Also ritual caster has the int/wid prereq making it harder to use too.

[@tyquanfleming8554]

Hanna vs monique

[@PhenixArcher]

Druid isn't one of the classes you can choose for magic initiate.

[@NerdImmersion]

yes it is

[@steveaustin2686]

If you have a feat at first level, like for Variant Human, you can take Magic Initiate: Druid for a bump in spells. Then you have three 1st level spells instead of two and one of them you can use for free once per day. So Goodberry, Cure Wounds, or Healing Word are all good candidates for that. If you want to use that spell with spell slots, you still have to prepare it, but the extra use of Cure Wounds or Healing Word for free can be vital. Or don't prepare Goodberry and use it for free once per day for food. You start with four cantrips instead of two, so take Shillelagh, Produce Flame, Control Flames, and Guidance. Later, you can take Spell Sniper to take Magic Stone and double the range for it and Produce Flame. With Produce Flame, Fire Bolt, Burning Hands, Fireball, etc, all causing fires, being able to extinguish a square of fire per round, or spread it, is very useful.

[@seppa193]

Nice list but I still think lists like this are useless because it depends on what you play.

[@morganpetros9635]

You completely forgot to mention Find Familiar! I don't care if it's a Ritual spell; it's probably the best first-level spell in the game, and whether it can be cast as a Ritual or not really, REALLY doesn't matter. If you're a non-caster, or a caster who doesn't get this spell, taking Find Familiar is a fantastic choice for somebody taking the wizard Magic Initiate feat. And since you had ALREADY mentioned ANOTHER Ritual spell (was it Identify in the bard class? I think it was ...), there is no reason to ignore this AMAZING spell. Also, I'd be ... interested ... to hear why you FIRST mention Chill Touch when praising the warlock spell list while completely ignoring it under sorcerer and wizard. If this is truly part of your consideration of the warlock as the number one source for Magic Initiate, shouldn't it have been considered for sorcerer as well? That class ALSO has a lot of synergy with other CHA-based characters. While I agree that warlock is the best spell list to take Magic Initiate from (especially FOR a warlock, which gets relatively few cantrips), I think sorcerer probably should have ranked above bard just from the ability to choose both Chill Touch and Mind Sliver, neither of which the bard gets. I also don't understand why you rate the wizard so highly when you seem to value stat synergy so much. There are ... what? Three? Yeah, three subclasses outside the wizard itself (which really doesn't need any more cantrips, and can learn any spell it wants to). But even if you count every wizard subclass (and we should), you get a total of 11 subclasses that rely on INT, whereas between bard, paladin, sorcerer and warlock there are TWENTY-EIGHT charisma-based subclasses, and between cleric, druid, monk and ranger there are THIRTY-TWO. And since many, many of these subclasses (all of the monk, paladin and ranger class) get NO cantrips whereas only the Psi Warrior fighter has the same problem for the Intelligence-based specialties, shouldn't that weight the WIS and CHA classes even higher just because they're so much better for so many more classes? Perhaps it would be a good idea to post a video about which four or five classes BENEFIT MOST from taking this feat, to complement this post? But overall, I think you rate the wizard FAR too highly here. It should, AT BEST, be around #5 or #4 on this list ... and that only if you quit ignoring the Find Familiar spell just because "it's a ritual spell." Then and ONLY THEN does it rise above the druid, and that just because the druid's attack cantrips are mostly crap and Guidance, great as it is, doesn't hold a candle to Find Familiar, even if you CAN'T cast FF as a ritual. So MY ratings for this feat would be: Druid-Wizard-Cleric-Bard-Sorcerer-Warlock. But note that this list might change depending on the rules at the table. For example, if (as I believe Jeremy Crawford stated in some Sage Advice article or another, though I can't find it offhand) spellcasters can ALSO cast the first-level spell provided by this feat using spell slots (as happens with the feats in Tasha's Cauldron), then any class that could allow a player to cast, for example, Faerie Fire, Shield or Guiding Bolt (or Hex, which is, after all, a Concentration spell) would get a big boost in my opinion.