Unearthed Arcana (New Spells)

Hey Game Fans, we’re back with a brief look at one of the new options released by Wizards in their Unearthed Arcana series.  They’ve added a bunch of new spells for low level characters of all spellcasting persuasions, and we’re going to take a look at them and see what they add to the game.  We’re not going to break each spell down because i would rather you read the spell for yourself and see what creative things you can do with it.  So let’s dig in to the new spells and see what we can find.

Spell Lists

Bard

1st level

Guiding Hand (Divination, Ritual)

Puppet (Enchantment)

Sense Emotion (Divination)

Sudden Awakening (Enchantment)

Unearthly Chorus (Illusion)

Cleric

Cantrips

Hand of Radiance (Evocation)

Toll of the Dead (Necromancy)

Virtue (Abjuration)

1st Level

Ceremony (Conjuration, Ritual)

Guiding Hand (Divination, Ritual)

Druid

Cantrips

Infestation (Conjuration)

Primal Savagery (Transmutation)

1st Level

Guiding Hand (Divination, Ritual)

Snare (Abjuration)

Wild Cunning (Transmutation)

Paladin

1st Level

Ceremony (Conjuration, Ritual)

Ranger

1st Level

Snare (Abjuration)

Sudden Awakening (Enchantment)

Wild Cunning (Transmutation)

Zephyr Strike (Transmutation)

Sorcerer

Cantrip

Infestation (Conjuration)

1st Level

Chaos Bolt (Evocation)

Sudden Awakening (Enchantment)

Warlock

Cantrips

Infestation (Conjuration)

Toll the Dead (Necromancy)

1st Level

Cause Fear (Necromancy)

Healing Elixir (Conjuration)

Puppet (Enchantment)

Sense Emotion (Divination)

Wizard

Cantrips

Infestation (Conjuration)

Toll the Dead (Necromancy)

1st Level

Cause Fear (Necromancy)

Guiding Hand (Divination, Ritual)

Healing Elixir (Conjuration)

Puppet (Enchantment)

Sense Emotion (Divination)

Snare (Abjuration)

Sudden Awakening (Enchantment)

Highlights

Now these spells give a low level character a variety of options for handling situations.  They’re very flavorful spells, and fit within the overall theme of the character class they’re intended for.  Some of these cross class boundaries, and i’m going to go over a few of my favorites.

Chaos Bolt:

Chaos Bolt’s a neat little offensive spell for the Sorcerer.  It’s almost tailor made for a wild magic sorcerer, as it does 2D8 points of damage of a randomly determined type.  If the results come up as doubles, the bolt arcs to another creature within 30 feet, where the damage is rolled again (including type), and it can also arc on a doubles.  It’s a fun spell that feels extremely thematic while still being unpredictable in game.

Ceremony:

Ceremony is one of the best catchall spells i’ve seen in for 5th edition.  It encompasses many of the religious acts you’d expect a cleric or priest to be able to perform and actually gives them a mechanical benefit in the game.  It’s a neat spell that lets a religious leader do good for the community he or she works in.  Very clever idea.

Honorable Mentions:

Guiding Hand:  Because sometimes we get lost.

Hand of Radiance: Clear the swarms

Conclusions

There are some interesting new spells to tinker with, and they expand the capabilities of low level adventurers.  There are sections of the fan base that are clamoring for more spells and new options, and these do a fine job of meeting that need without creating analysis paralysis.  The number of choices don’t overwhelm the player with too many choices.  Good Article, and i hope we seem some more options for 2nd and 3rd level spells soon.  Game On, Game Fans.