The Latest One D&D Spell Updates: New Nerfs For Old Favorites
Alongside the new species and Cleric, the latest One D&D packet tries out a number of spell updates, with new nerfs for old favorites.
The latest Unearthed Arcana has more than just new Dragonborn rules, Goliath options, and Clerics. Along with the Clerics, there are some new takes on old spells. These One D&D Spell Updates have been steadily rolling out over the last two playtest documents. The most recent batch brings some new nerfs for old favorites though.
Cleric Spells, long thought to be “must-includes” on any Cleric‘s prep list, in particular, get tweaked. Spiritual Weapon, in particular, gets a substantive nerf. But other spells get buffed. Which got which? Let’s find out.
One D&D Spell Updates
There are six updated spells in the Cleric Unearthed Arcana. All of them are popular Cleric options (or at the very least soon to be popular).
Aid is one of the first big nerfs, and one of the only ones that many players seem to disagree with. Aid used to raise a creature’s maximum hit points by five, for about eight hours, while also increasing a target’s hp total by the same amount.
Now, however, it’s been nerfed, so all it does is grant 5 Temporary Hit Points per spell level used, affecting up to six creatures. This means Aid is much less of a proactive heal spell. It no longer stacks with other sources of temporary hit points like a Heroism spell. Still, the spell is instantaneous, and the extra temporary hit points don’t (as yet) vanish upon resting.
Banishment also gets a big nerf. It is no longer a one-stop save or be gone for a minute spell. Now, affected creatures repeat their Charisma saving throw at the end of each of their turns. Meaning this spell no longer gets rid of the BBEG for a minute, guaranteed if they fail their save.
Guidance gets a fairly substantive buff from its iteration in the Expert Class Unearthed Arcana. Where before, the spell only worked once per creature per long rest, that restriction is removed. Now Guidance can be used as a reaction to add 1d4 to a failed skill check to a creature within 10 feet. This is a 0-level Divination Spell and can be used at will, basically. Meaning any failed check can potentially be a success if a Cleric is within 10 feet.
Prayer of Healing gets a significant change. It no longer automatically affects up to six creatures. Instead, it heals up to your Spellcasting Ability Modifier number of creatures per casting. But the spell now also grants the benefit of a full-on Short Rest to every creature who remains within 30 feet of the caster for the full ten-minute casting time. Which is pretty spicy.
Resistance gets a shiny new version. Like Guidance, Resistance is now a Reaction spell. You can cast it in response to an ally failing a saving throw. It has a range of 10 feet, so you have to be near your allies, but it’s another 1d4 you can retroactively add to a failed save. As it’s a 0-level spell, this means the Cleric can do it indefinitely, meaning that Bards, feeling the crunch of their limited Bardic Inspiration which does the same thing, might want to find a way to add these spells to their lists.
Finally, Spiritual Weapon gets nerfed out of every Cleric’s list of must-pick 2nd-level spells. It is functionally identical in every way to its 5th Edition incarnation save one: the spell now takes Concentration. Which is enough of a nerf that you have to think about whether or not you want to waste your concentration spell on a Bonus Action 1d8 attack or on potentially something like Haste or Heat Metal instead.
What do you think of the changes? Let us know in the comments!
