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  1. - Top - End - #1
    Pixie in the Playground
     
    ElfMonkGuy

    Join Date
    Nov 2018
    Location
    A magical place.
    Gender
    Male2Female

    Default 5e homebrew: New Cantrips

    I hold in my hand a list of ten new (mostly) utility cantrips. As the creator, I'll likely be missing some obvious flaws <koff koff healing spirit>, so any advice or constructive criticism is fine. Hell, curse me out for being a terrible spell designer and person, as long as you specify how it could be improved.

    Enjoy!

    Accelerate
    Enchantment cantrip
    Casting Time: 1 bonus action
    Range: Touch
    Components: S
    Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute

    You slightly speed up one person, making them move faster for a short period of time. Whenever the creature you touch moves, increase the distance it moves by 5 feet. This has no effect if the creature's speed is 0, or if they are otherwise unable to move. The creature you touch does not have to be willing. Creatures might not be aware they are under the effects of the spell. This does not apply to small movements, like taking a single step forward and stopping.

    Convergence of Ideals
    Enchantment cantrip

    Casting Time: 1 action
    Range: Touch
    Components: V, S, M
    Duration: 1 round

    The creature you touch must make a Wisdom save -2 DC. If they fail, the next attack they make is against a target you choose (Not itself or a creature of the same species).

    Dive
    Evocation cantrip

    Casting time: 1 action

    Range: Self

    Components: V, M (a merfolk scale)

    Duration: 1 minute

    You gain a swimming speed equal to your walking speed and become amphibious for 1 minute. You may not cast this spell while any part of you is in water or any liquid.

    Forward Thinking
    Divination cantrip

    Casting Time: 1 action
    Range: self
    Components: None (still requires your action)
    Duration: Instantaneous

    You glimpse into the possible futures of an outcome and tamper with then slightly, increasing the odds in your favor- although this effect drains you slightly, worsening your abilities otherwise. The next ability check you do has advantage. Then roll 1d6. If you roll a 3 or less, you have disadvantage on the next ability check you make after the one you have advantage on.

    Fresh Air
    Conjuration cantrip

    Casting Time: 1 action
    Range: Touch
    Components: S
    Duration: 1 minute

    You may only cast this spell twice a day. Target creature you touch can breathe both on land and underwater. This spell does not protect against gas-based damaging spells, such as *cloudkill*.

    In Range
    Transmutation cantrip

    Casting Time:1 action or reaction (in response to an ally making a melee weapon attack)
    Range: 30 feet
    Components: S
    Duration: Instantaneous

    You make an arcane gesture and the weapon your ally wields cuts with a new length. Increase the range of an ally's reach by 5 feet on their next attack.

    Overcome
    Abjuration cantrip
    ___
    Casting Time:1 reaction, in response to an ally being moved against their will
    Range: 30 feet
    Components:
    Duration: Instantaneous

    You reduce the range target creature allied with you would be moved against their will by 5 feet.

    Preemptive Strike
    Divination cantrip

    Casting Time: 1 reaction, in response to an attack being declared against you
    Range: Touch
    Components: S
    Duration: Instantaneous

    Before you are attacked but after the attack has been declared, you may make an attack roll against the creature attacking you as if you were making a melee attack, adding your spellcasting ability modifier instead of adding Strength. If the attack hits, the target takes 1d4 damage and continues to attack as normal. You cannot cast this spell if your speed is 0 or if you are incapacitated.

    Splinter Pull
    Evocation cantrip

    Casting Time: 1 action
    Range: 20 foot square centered you
    Components: V, S, M (a piece of wood worth at least 5 GP in good condition, which the spell consumes)
    Duration: Instantaneous

    The wooden shard that you use to cast the spell breaks into many shards and rains down around you. All other creatures within range must make a Dexterity saving throw or take 1d10 piercing damage.

    Tale
    Enchantment cantrip

    Casting Time: 1 minute
    Range: 30 feet
    Components: V
    Duration: 1 day

    Choose any numbers of creatures within range. Each creature must make a Charisma saving throw. On a failure, the creatures will spread word of you or something you choose for the duration of the spell, although not going out of their way to do so. For example, if you wanted to spread word of a revolution one of the people affected by your spell might tell the butcher they buy meat from later that day. On a successful save, nothing happens. Either way, the creature's don't know that they've been magically influenced.


    All right, that wraps it up. Have a great evening! :)

  2. - Top - End - #2
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Planetar

    Join Date
    May 2018

    Default Re: 5e homebrew: New Cantrips

    I like a lot of them, but they tend to have very weird details in them.

    Accelerate:
    Why is it worded like that? Why not just increase all the creature's movement speed unless they are 0? Is there some intended combo with pushing the creature around?

    Convergence of Ideals
    "Save -2" is not something that exists in 5e. Use instead "Save - prof bonus" or "Save - d4" for more consistency with the existing effects.
    The restriction on species should not be there, the restriction should be "not an trustworthy ally" or something alike. I don't see why Mr Aristocrat will be forbidden to backstab a random barbarian mercenary just because this mercenary is technically human, but would totally backstab his childhood friend aristocratic Elf which share the same value and culture as him.
    => Alternatively, a restriction on alignment instead could work quite well, though that would make detecting alignement too easier than usual.

    Dive
    The restriction to not have any part of you in a liquid is very weird and arbitrary. Does having wet socks prevent you from casting this spell?
    If the goal is to prevent chaining them to get unlimited swimming, I'd rather increase the casting time (like 1min) or move this spell to a 1st level ritual (so 10min casting time).

    Forward Thinking
    5e usually use d20 for heads or tails (see the blinking spell).
    Penalties to the "next ability check" don't work very well in 5e, because contrary to attacks or saves, the number of ability checks you get is very DM dependent. (e.g arguably, making a pun while striking the enemy is a Performance check that doesn't consume any action and has no mechanical effect when successful or failed)

    Fresh Air
    If an ability is limited per day, it's not a cantrip, and you're trying to include in cantrips effects that are not supposed to be cantrip. That's probably an effect part of a feat or an half-feat.
    The only similar effect is Prestidigitation that restrict the number of copy of the spell you can maintain at once, but not the number you can cast per day.

    In Range
    I suppose you cannot target yourself with that.
    It's particularly strong (too strong?) in the first level, but reasonable as soon as peoples start to have two attacks per round.

    Overcome
    Sure. Probably too circumstantial (and does it works with forced teleportation?). A d4 bonus against being grabbed would probably make it interesting enough.

    Preemptive Strike
    Very complex wording. Just say it is a melee spell attack of range 5ft (see thorn whip for another spell making a melee spell attack).

    Splinter Pull
    I like it.

    Tale
    That sound way too effective for a cantrip, especially with the clause saying that they don't notice it.
    That basically mean that if you go to a celebration of some sort, you can spam this spells for few hours and affect everybody. At the bare minimum, you need to state that if the spell fail you can't affect them again for one day. But even then it might still be too strong. (Though as for all enchantment spells, balancing is a hot mess depending on the DM).
    Last edited by MoiMagnus; 2020-12-16 at 11:20 AM.

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