Hello spell practitioners of all shapes and sizes! Welcome to my spellbook and thank you so much for checking out the 41st episode of our cantrip series. May i introduce to you the toll the dead 5e cantrip which is very cool thematically as well as damage-wise…very nice spell. It is usable by the cleric, warlock and the wizard and naturally through extension anyone else have access to their spell lists and it is found in the xanathar’s guide to everything book. Which is a must-have in all honesty provides a ton of great content. Let’s look at some mechanics for this spell.
Mechanics
- Level: Cantrip
- Casting Time: 1 Action
- Range/Area: 60 ft
- Components: V, S
- Duration: Instantaneous
- School: Necromancy
- Attack/Save: WIS Save
- Damage/Effect: Necrotic
So there’s two ways to deal damage or 2 damage die rather. A D8 and a d12. The d8 will be used if the target has not taken damage and the d12 will be used at the target has taken damage. Starting up with one of each and you get an additional at 5th, 11th and 17th level for a grand total of 4d8 assuming it hasn’t taken damage and 4d12 assuming it has. You can also read does toll the dead work on undead.
The cast time is one action and the range is a decent 60 feet. The duration is instantaneous, the saving throw is wisdom, the components are somatic and verbal meaning you have to gesture with one hand and speaking incantation. The school is a necromancy and the damage type is necrotic. Also check out our article on what does toll the dead look like.
Which i make sense when you think about it. Now let’s take a look at the full description, just to make sure we’re on the same page and for inspiration regarding the flavor of this spell. how to determine saving throws 5e.
Description
You point at one creature you can see within range, and the sound of a dolorous bell fills the air around it for a moment. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or take 1d8 necrotic damage. If the target is missing any of its hit points, it instead takes 1d12 necrotic damage. The spell’s damage increases by one die when you reach 5th level (2d8 or 2d12), 11th level (3d8 or 3d12), and 17th level (4d8 or 4d12).
All right! So quite a decent amount to unpack there. First and foremost it would be worth mentioning how loud is toll the dead is that only one target can hear the sound at a time. So it kind of appears within their head, it’s not so much a sound has actually heard on the battlefield. Now let’s take a look at some alternative uses. also read this dnd toll the dead vs eldritch blast and also read our individual article on dnd eldritch blast.
Alternative Uses
The best way i could think about using this outside of combat would be to substantiate the existence and power of your deity. If someone argues with you or someone of an opposite faith attempts to make you change your ways. You can simply cast this cantrip and act as though with his power directly coming from your patron whatever they maybe. Outside of that i’m not too sure of a lot of effective uses for it. Also check out this 5e spells that do acid damage.
Conclusion
If you have any ideas or if you have any cool stories about this spell i would love to hear them down in the comments below and so would everyone else checking this article. With that in mind i hope you all have a great day and as always happy casting. sacred flame 5e | word of radiance 5e | chill touch | firebolt | spare the dying 5e | guiding bolt 5e | what is the death touch spell in d&d? | what is the most damaging spell in 5e?.