Blog (A5E) Spellcasting Monsters in Level Up

One of our goals with the Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition Monstrous Menagerie was to make enemy spellcasters less of a pain to run. With an updated stat block format, we've made it possible to run a complex battle without looking up spells in another book or online resource–all while working as expected with existing spells and features like counterspell and antimagic field.

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As an example, here's our NPC priest stat block:

In Level Up, if a monster or NPC's spell is likely to see use in combat, we include it as an action (or reaction, or bonus action) in their stat block. For instance, in the priest's stat block, spirit guardians is fully detailed as an action, just like their mace attack. You don't need another book or an online tool to run a monster.

Spells are spells​

The spirit guardians action is listed in the priest’s Spellcasting trait, which means that it's a spell. It interacts with the usual spellcasting rules: a rival priest can cast dispel magic on it, and the priest can't cast it and healing word in the same turn. It doesn't break or ignore any of the usual rules of the game.

Our stat block also notes that spirit guardians is a concentration spell (so whack that evil priest and force a concentration check!), and we list its spell components of V, S, and M (someone cast a silence spell!)

Guidance for the Narrator​

We don't convert every spell into an action. That would lead to unmanageable, multi-page stat blocks. If it's a utility spell or it's not usually worth casting in combat, then it appears only in the monster's spell list and not as an action. You might find a clever use for a utility spell - or want to look up additional rules, like how to cast a spell with a higher slot. In that case, you'll have to consult the spell description. Most of the time, though, you can run a monster quite efficiently without consulting another book.

Powerful spellcasters have a lot of options! That's a feature of the game, not a bug. Our most complex spellcaster, the lich, has 22 spells prepared, of which nine are detailed in its stat block. Still, the lich stat block fits handily on one page spread - with room left for a section of combat advice.

Between our various stat block changes–the curated list of spells in the stat block, the notes for concentration and components, and the combat advice–Level Up lets you run every spellcaster, even a complex and high-level one like a lich, with zero prep.

We're proud of our spellcaster format. Rather than inventing new tech that changes the way the game works, we've polished the presentation to provide maximum usability. We think it's going to be the state of the art for quite some time.

 

[Staffan]

Yeah... I don't price out individual traits/features, for instance by saying that Petrifying Gaze is worth such and such an adjustment, since there are more traits/features than monsters. Instead, there are rules for determining how much damage or HP an effect is equivalent to, based on what condition (or other effect, like pushes and pulls, disadvantage on attacks, damage transference, and so on) it imposes, to how many targets, whether it's limited-use, etc. You multiply that out and come up with an amount that you should reduce your monster's hp or damage per turn to account for it.

Do the guidelines take diminishing returns into account?

What I mean is that giving a monster a 1/rest ability to cast fireball dealing 8d6 damage is pretty strong in tier 2. So is a breath weapon dealing 8d8 in a 20 foot cone, recharging on a 6. I'd say those abilities are roughly equivalent – the breath weapon deals a little more damage, but in a smaller area that is also more limited in where you can use it. But I don't think having both those abilities is worth twice as much as having one or the other, because there's a fairly good chance you won't get to use both in any one fight.

 

[duneguy]

Not to get offtopic, but I do have an upcoming post about dragons! And there are spellcasting variants of each dragon, some with quite high-level spells (though mostly not direct damage, since few spells can compete with a dragon's natural damage-dealing abilities). But more on that later, let's save our dragon thoughts for that thread.

And @Staffan I definitely take that into account. If a monster won't get around to using an ability until turn 4 or 5, it's likely to have no effect on the battle.

 

[lichmaster]

Immunity to low-to-moderate level spells is a defining feature of a lich? I can't find anything about that in 1e, 2e, 3e, or 5e, and it doesn't seem like the kind of thing a 4e monster would have. The only monster I can think of off-hand that has blanket immunity to spells below a certain level are rakshasa. And I guess Tiamat.

You're right, I mixed up its description with the Rakshasa. But it reported "The magical nature of the lich and its undead state make it utterly immune to charm, sleep, enfeeblement, polymorph, cold, electricity, insanity, or death spells".

They really weren't, at least not the chromatic dragons. Black and white dragons never got more than 1st level wizard spells,

Nope: "darkness three times a day in a 10’ radius per age category of the dragon. Adult: corrupt water once a day. For every age category a dragon attains, it can stagnate 10 cubic feet of water, making it become still, foul, inert, and unable to support animal life. When this ability is used against potions and elixirs, they become useless if they roll a 15 or better on 1d20. Old: plant growth once a day. Venerable: summon insects once a day. Great wyrm: charm reptiles three times a day. This operates as a charm mammals spell, but is applicable only to reptiles."

greens maxed out at 2nd level spells,

Nope: "water breathing. Adult: suggestion once a day. Mature adult: warp wood three times a day. Old: plant growth once a day. Very old: entangle once a day. Wyrm: pass without trace three times a day."

blues at 3rd level wizard and 1st level priest spells,

Young: create or destroy water three times per day. Juvenile: sound imitation at will. Adult: dust devil once a day. Old: ventriloquism once a day. Venerable: hallucinatory terrain once a day.

and only red dragons got 5th level wizard and 2nd level priest spells.

Young: affect normal fires three times per day. Juvenile: pyrotechnics three times per day. Adult: heat metal once per day. Old: suggestion once per day. Very old: hypnotism once per day. Venerable: detect gems, kind and number in a 100’ radius three times a day.

And that's when you're at Great Wyrm status – the only adult chromatic dragon with higher than 1st level spells was the red. Gem and metallic dragons had quite a bit more ooomph when it came to spellcasting though, but even they only learned spells randomly – the DM was supposed to randomly generate what spells a specific dragon would have, except for gold dragons.

The monster manual literally gave specific spells for each dragon and age category

 

[Tonguez]

Where did arc lightning come from?

 

[Staffan]

Nope: "darkness three times a day in a 10’ radius per age category of the dragon. Adult: corrupt water once a day. For every age category a dragon attains, it can stagnate 10 cubic feet of water, making it become still, foul, inert, and unable to support animal life. When this ability is used against potions and elixirs, they become useless if they roll a 15 or better on 1d20. Old: plant growth once a day. Venerable: summon insects once a day. Great wyrm: charm reptiles three times a day. This operates as a charm mammals spell, but is applicable only to reptiles."

Ah, you're thinking of those abilities. I thought you meant their actual spellcasting. To some degree, those abilities have been incorporated into their regional and lair effects. For example, black dragons can create 15 foot radius darkness as a lair actions, and one of their regional effects is to foul all water sources within a mile. I think those abilities generally work better as lair actions, particularly in 5e's high-intensity combat, because that way they don't compete with multiattack or the breath weapon.

 

[Dragonsbane]

This all looks very interesting. Can you tell us about the playtesting that went into the production of this revised system?

 

[Jmarso]

Completely OT and no bearing to LU at all, but it always saddens me that a high priest, one who has 6th level spells and can command life and death itself…would be highly expected to get ganked by just two 6th level characters in a straight up fight.

Only if you are a lazy DM. In my game, this lich would be smart enough to never engage in a 'straight up fight.' Or, at least, its own version of that would be entirely different- not to stupidly stand in front of a party of adventurers and slug it out mano y mano. It's going to use its lair, its guardians, and every tool, trap, and spell at its disposal to rid its lair of these pesky, unworthy intruders. Every time the party engages a lair guardian, the lich will briefly appear from behind, do someone in, and then teleport or dimension door out. Guerilla tactics, and so on. Believe me, any opponent with a 20 INT score isn't just going to 'stand there and take it.' If it takes one on the chin, it'll retreat for its own long rest and be back later. Not only that, its phylactery and spell books will be nigh impossible to find, and the lair itself will be so deadly that the party will despair before the first time they encounter the lich.

Same game with dragons, vampires, and other high CR foes that use lairs. You aren't just going to casually stroll up, roll for initiative, and smoke 'em. Monsters fight smart, they play to their own advantages, and they will rarely fight to the death if they can escape.

 

[Imaculata]

This new format is a great improvement! Having to look up spells for enemy spellcaster has always been a pain.

 

[Tsuga C]

Same game with dragons, vampires, and other high CR foes that use lairs. You aren't just going to casually stroll up, roll for initiative, and smoke 'em. Monsters fight smart, they play to their own advantages, and they will rarely fight to the death if they can escape.

But...but that violates the four-round combat rule and might possibly make the players WORK for their experience points and swag. You unconscionably heartless FIEND, you!

 

[Stalker0]

Only if you are a lazy DM. In my game, this lich would be smart enough to never engage in a 'straight up fight.' Or, at least, its own version of that would be entirely different- not to stupidly stand in front of a party of adventurers and slug it out mano y mano. It's going to use its lair, its guardians, and every tool, trap, and spell at its disposal to rid its lair of these pesky, unworthy intruders. Every time the party engages a lair guardian, the lich will briefly appear from behind, do someone in, and then teleport or dimension door out. Guerilla tactics, and so on. Believe me, any opponent with a 20 INT score isn't just going to 'stand there and take it.' If it takes one on the chin, it'll retreat for its own long rest and be back later. Not only that, its phylactery and spell books will be nigh impossible to find, and the lair itself will be so deadly that the party will despair before the first time they encounter the lich.

Same game with dragons, vampires, and other high CR foes that use lairs. You aren't just going to casually stroll up, roll for initiative, and smoke 'em. Monsters fight smart, they play to their own advantages, and they will rarely fight to the death if they can escape.

I was referring to the CR 6 high priest, not the lich.