by Claude Helper | Sep 8, 2026 | Spells
Level 1 Abjuration spell available to Clerics, cast as a Bonus Action. Until the target attacks, enemies simply cannot target it. A one-turn safety bubble for a rescuer or a squishy caster.
Spell description: Ward yourself or an ally against enemy attacks. Until the affected entity attacks or harms another creature, it cannot be targeted by enemy attacks. However, it can still take damage from spells that affect a large area.
Spell properties
- Range: 18m (60ft)
- Duration: 10 turns
- Conditions applied: Sanctuary. The creature cannot be directly targeted by enemy attacks.
- Cost: Bonus Action + Spell Slot
- Recharge: Per action
Spell upcasting
Casting Sanctuary at higher levels provides no additional benefits.
How to obtain Sanctuary
- Cleric at Class level 1
- Oath of Devotion (Paladin) at Class level 3
- College of Lore (Bard) at Class level 6 via Magical Secrets
- Bard at Class level 10 via Magical Secrets
- Granted by features: Magic Initiate: Cleric
Ward yourself or an ally against enemy attacks. Until the affected entity attacks or harms another creature, it cannot be targeted by enemy attacks. However, it can still take damage from spells that affect a large area.
When to cast Sanctuary
It is a Bonus Action, which is what makes it good. Drop it on a downed ally’s rescuer, on your squishy caster, or on someone who just got surrounded, and the enemy AI simply cannot target them with attacks until they act aggressively.
The rule that trips people: the protected creature can still heal, Help, hide, or run, but the instant it attacks or harms an enemy, Sanctuary ends. Use it to buy a turn of safety, not to attack from behind.
by Claude Helper | Sep 8, 2026 | Spells
Level 1 Abjuration spell available to Clerics, Warlocks, and Wizards. It wards an ally against Fiends, Undead, and other outsiders: they attack it with Disadvantage and cannot Charm, Frighten, or possess it.
Spell description: Protect an ally against the attacks and powers of Aberrations, Celestials, Elementals, Fey, Fiends, and Undead. The target can’t be Charmed, Frightened, or possessed by them, and when these creatures attack it, they have Disadvantage.
Spell properties
- Range: Melee (1.5m)
- Duration: Until Long Rest
- Concentration spell
- Conditions applied: Cannot be Charmed, Frightened, or possessed by the listed creature types, which also attack the target with Disadvantage.
- Cost: Action + Spell Slot
- Recharge: Per action
Spell upcasting
Casting Protection from Evil and Good at higher levels provides no additional benefits.
How to obtain Protection from Evil and Good
- Cleric, Warlock, Wizard at Class level 1
- Paladin at Class level 2
- Oath of Devotion (Paladin), Arcane Trickster (Rogue), and Eldritch Knight (Fighter) at Class level 3
- Keeper of the Veil (Ranger) as a Favoured Enemy choice
- Granted by features: Magic Initiate: Cleric, Warlock, or Wizard
- Source item: The Ever-Seeing Eye
Protect an ally against the attacks and powers of Aberrations, Celestials, Elementals, Fey, Fiends, and Undead. The target can’t be Charmed, Frightened, or possessed by them, and when these creatures attack it, they have Disadvantage.
When to cast Protection from Evil and Good
This is a prepare-when-you-know spell. Against the Fiends, Undead, and Aberrations that pack the back half of the game it hands a target Disadvantage on incoming attacks and total immunity to their Charm, Fear, and possession, which shuts down whole enemy strategies.
The catch is that it is Concentration despite lasting until Long Rest, so you can only protect one ally and a solid hit drops it. Put it on the character the enemy most wants to dominate, and keep your caster safe.
by Claude Helper | Sep 8, 2026 | Spells
Level 1 Abjuration spell available to Clerics and Paladins. A Bonus Action that grants +2 Armour Class until Long Rest. A cheap, efficient buff for your front-line tank.
Spell description: Surround a creature with a shimmering field of magic that increases its Armour Class by 2.
Spell properties
- Range: 18m (60ft)
- Duration: Until Long Rest
- Concentration spell
- Conditions applied: +2 bonus to Armour Class.
- Cost: Bonus Action + Spell Slot
- Recharge: Per turn
Spell upcasting
Casting Shield of Faith at higher levels provides no additional benefits.
How to obtain Shield of Faith
- Cleric at Class level 1
- War Domain (Cleric) at Class level 1, as a Domain Spell
- Paladin at Class level 2
- Granted by features: Magic Initiate: Cleric
- Several versions are available from items (see the wiki)
Surround a creature with a shimmering field of magic that increases its Armour Class by 2.
When to cast Shield of Faith
+2 Armour Class for a Bonus Action, cast from range, lasting until Long Rest, is a very efficient buff to hang on your front-line tank at the start of a fight. Over a whole encounter that +2 turns a lot of hits into misses.
The cost is Concentration, which is the real decision on a Cleric who would rather be holding Spirit Guardians or Bless. On a Paladin with nothing else to concentrate on, it is close to free value.
by Claude Helper | Sep 8, 2026 | Spells
Level 1 Enchantment spell available to Bards and Wizards. It leaves a creature Prone and helpless with laughter, unable to stand. A single-target hard lock for one slot.
Spell description: Inflict a creature with fits of laughter, leaving it Prone without the ability to get up. At the end of its turn or when it takes damage, the creature can try to shake off the effect.
Spell properties
- Range: 18m (60ft)
- Duration: 10 turns
- Concentration spell
- Save: WIS save
- Conditions applied: Prone and incapacitated, unable to get up.
- Cost: Action + Spell Slot
- Recharge: Per action
Spell upcasting
Casting Tasha’s Hideous Laughter at higher levels provides no additional benefits.
How to obtain Tasha’s Hideous Laughter
- Bard, Wizard at Class level 1
- The Great Old One (Warlock) at Class level 1
- Draconic Bloodline (Copper, Acid ancestry) Sorcerer at Class level 1
- Arcane Trickster (Rogue) and Eldritch Knight (Fighter) at Class level 3
- Granted by features: Magic Initiate: Bard, Magic Initiate: Wizard
Inflict a creature with fits of laughter, leaving it Prone without the ability to get up. At the end of its turn or when it takes damage, the creature can try to shake off the effect.
When to cast Tasha’s Hideous Laughter
It is a single-target hard lock for one Level 1 slot. The victim is Prone and cannot stand, which means it is stuck on the floor taking Advantage attacks from your whole party while its own attacks suffer Disadvantage.
The weakness is that it can shrug off the effect whenever it takes damage, so it works best when you lock down one dangerous enemy and focus the rest of the party elsewhere. It is Concentration and a Wisdom save, so it is a control tool, not a guarantee.
by Claude Helper | Sep 8, 2026 | Spells
Level 1 Enchantment spell available to Bards, Sorcerers, and Wizards. It drops the lowest-health enemies in an area with no save, and sleeping targets take automatic critical hits. Brutal in the early game.
Spell description: Put creatures up to a combined 24 Hit Points into a magical slumber. Sleeping creatures awaken if they take damage.
Spell properties
- Range: 18m (60ft)
- Duration: 2 turns
- Conditions applied: Sleeping. The creature cannot move or act.
- Cost: Action + Spell Slot
- Recharge: Per action
Spell upcasting
Casting Sleep at a higher level affects creatures with an additional 8 Hit Points for each spell slot level above the 1st.
How to obtain Sleep
- Bard, Sorcerer, Wizard at Class level 1
- Knowledge Domain (Cleric) and The Archfey (Warlock) at Class level 1
- Draconic Bloodline (Brass, Fire ancestry) Sorcerer at Class level 1
- Arcane Trickster (Rogue) and Eldritch Knight (Fighter) at Class level 3
- Granted by features: Magic Initiate: Bard, Sorcerer, or Wizard
Put creatures up to a combined 24 Hit Points into a magical slumber. Sleeping creatures awaken if they take damage.
When to cast Sleep
Sleep has no save. It simply puts the lowest-health enemies in the area under, up to a 24 HP budget, and a sleeping creature is helpless: it cannot act, and melee attacks against it are automatic critical hits. In the early game that is devastating.
The catch is the HP budget shrinks in relative terms as enemies get tougher, and any damage wakes them, so tell your party not to poke a sleeper you want kept down. Upcast it to raise the budget and it stays relevant longer than most Level 1 spells.
Range: 18m (60ft)
Duration: 10 turns
Save: WIS save 
