D&D 5E Shields and Somatic Components: Will you play it "as is?"

[Stalker0]

Reading through 5e, I realized that a good portion of Cleric spells could not be cast if the cleric used a shield (somatic components).


I thought this was a terrible idea, afterall clerics could fully cast such spells in 3e!!!

That is...until I reread the 3e rules, and realized that I had house ruled it the entire time! Apparently my shield bearing clerics in 3e were all rules breaking gibbits.


I know there is the war caster feat (which is technically an optional rule). But I was curious how many people were planning to stick with the RAW on this one?

 

[Juriel]

I think it requires them to clarify what 'the caster must have free use of at least one hand to perform these gestures' exactly means, so we even know what is RAW.

Because the term 'free hand' shows up elsewhere in the rules, but they did NOT use it here, instead just saying that you need 'free use' of the hand, which is much murkier.

One can just interpret it as you being fine as long as you're not tied up.

Even with a strict interpretation, 5e allowing you to draw a weapon / put it away as a free action makes this mostly a moot point, mainly affecting people like Eldritch Knights.

 

[Henrix]

I used them, and will.

Drawing or putting away a weapon does not cost much, after all.
It does leave the cleric without a weapon to make an opportunity attack with after casting a spell.

 

[billd91]

We've been more or less playing things this way for a long time. What it mainly means is that the cleric has to shift whatever weapon he's carrying to his shield hand on a temporary basis. It mainly just interferes with the ability to take AoO on the time off the cleric's turn while the mace or whatever is held in the shield hand.

 

[Sunseeker]

One can just interpret it as you being fine as long as you're not tied up.

Even so, without explicitly detailing HOW one must gesture in order to cast a spell, for all we know it's simply a wiggle of the fingers. I always disliked "somatic" spells for this very reason. Materials oh yes that's fine. Vocal, oh no problem. But what is a "gesture"? Flipping the bird is as much as gesture as emphatically jumping up and down in excitement.

Does a caster need to sing and dance like they're reenacting Bippty Boppity Boo? Or do they merely need to wiggle their fingers and mumble under their breath?

It was once believed that in order for magic to affect you, the TARGET must see AND hear the spell. So if that's the logic behind vocal and somatic components, then logically the further from the target you are, the louder you need to speak and the more pronounced your gestures need to be.

To specifically the subject, if you're wielding a shield, that only takes up ONE arm, and if somatic components only require you to have use of a single free hand, then really all you need to do is just not wield a weapon. Not sure why a shield would impede two hands.

 

[Kobold Stew]

As a player, I like making a choice -- I like needing to think about what I'm doing in a round, and acting accordingly. as a result, I like the rule as it is, and the cleric I'm playing (still 1st level right now) makes the choice to stow or drop his weapon if he wants to cast a spell.

It doesn't require much of me, but I think it helps create a sense of authenticity in the story (even though we're dealing with magic).

 

[Juriel]

It doesn't require much of me, but I think it helps create a sense of authenticity in the story (even though we're dealing with magic).

Ah, the authenticity of Eldritch Knight being unable to use his class feature of casting a spell and hitting in the same round!

 

[Mistwell]

Your shield is your divine focus. You can use the same hand to use somatic components as the hand you use to hold your divine focus. This was clarified to work that way by WOTC recently as well.

 

[Savage Wombat]

Ah, the authenticity of Eldritch Knight being unable to use his class feature of casting a spell and hitting in the same round!

He's fine as long as he's smart enough to keep his off-hand free for the spell-casting. As many editions of D&D have depicted.

 

[AmpsterMan]

This question has actually been a point of difficulty for me with my bard. On theome hand, I want him to carry a shield, on the other, he won't be able to weild a peon and cast simultaneously.

I hear that sheathing a weapon is a free action anyway yes? perhaps it isn't as big a deal as I thought.