New Spells: Shadowy Illusions
PDF Link | D&D Beyond: Midnight, Shadow Lance
Art Credit: https://www.artofmtg.com/art/mountain-31/
Few things are more instinctually frightening than the mystery of what lurks in the shadows and darkness, and that’s especially true in the worlds of Dungeons and Dragons given all their monsters and dark magic. With entire dimensions dedicated to shadows and darkness, it stands to reason that there should be plenty of spells dedicated to the same thing! We’re previewing two spells focused on shadows from The Impermissicon, the upcoming compendium of forbidden magic, that are perfect for spellcasters themed around the Shadowfell or other forces and realms of nighttime and darkness.
Both of these new spells are illusions; midnight is similar to a massive version of blackout (which is an illusion, like the silence spell that also suppresses a medium of perception, and shadow lance is designed to be similar to the shadow blade spell (which is also an illusion). While midnight’s long casting time makes it difficult to use in combat, it is also not especially useful against most higher-level enemies, which usually have some ability to see in the dark. Despite that, midnight offers spellcasters the ability to blot out the sun over a city or army, and that kind of godlike narrative power must be locked behind 9th-level spell slots, whether it is being used by player characters or villainous NPCs.
Shadow lance, on the other hand, is a combat spell through-and-through. Much like shadow lance, it gains in power when the target is in shadows or darkness — but because the lance is hurled across a distance, you must also be in shadows or darkness. This also helps to cement that shadow lance — which is a cantrip rather than a 2nd-level spell — is thematically weaker than shadow blade. In addition to doing slightly more damage, this gain in power also causes the spell to shroud you (the caster) from the target until the start of your next turn, granting you a potent defensive advantage against a single target. Since that heavy obscurement doesn’t last into your next turn, it’s difficult to turn into advantage on attacks, keeping it as a defensive bonus to go along with the spell’s extra damage. It also presents extra choices to the caster: do you use the spell for the high magical damage on targets that are close to falling, or do you use it against the most dangerous targets that you wish to hide from?
PDF Link | D&D Beyond: Midnight, Shadow Lance
