Ray of Sickness

Level 1 Necromancy spell available to Sorcerers and Wizards. It deals 2d8 Poison and may Poison the target, handing it Disadvantage on attacks and checks. Good where Poison is not resisted.

Spell description: Call forth a ray of sickening energy. Deals 2d8 Poison damage and possibly Poisons the target. When Poisoned, the target suffers Disadvantage on Attack Rolls and Ability Checks.

Spell properties

• Damage: 2d8 Poison
• Damage type: Poison
• Range: 18m (60ft)
• Save: CON save
• Attack type: Ranged
• Conditions applied: Poisoned for 2 turns.
• Cost: Action + Spell Slot
• Recharge: Per action

Spell upcasting

Casting Ray of Sickness at a higher level deals an additional 1d8 Poison damage for each spell slot level above the 1st.

How to obtain Ray of Sickness

• Sorcerer, Wizard at Class level 1
• Death Domain (Cleric) at Class level 1, as a Domain Spell
• Draconic Bloodline (Green, Poison ancestry) Sorcerer at Class level 1
• Arcane Trickster (Rogue) and Eldritch Knight (Fighter) at Class level 3
• Granted by features: Magic Initiate: Sorcerer, Magic Initiate: Wizard
• Source items: Markoheshkir, Staff of Crones

When to cast Ray of Sickness

2d8 for a Level 1 slot is a decent hit, and the Poisoned rider is the bonus: a poisoned enemy attacks and checks at Disadvantage, which is a real debuff on a dangerous target for the next couple of turns.

The weakness is the damage type. Poison is one of the most commonly resisted types in the game, so against a lot of enemies you get half or nothing. Where it lands unresisted it is good; check the target before you rely on it.