D&D 5E Spells that make you go Hmm....

[Rabulias]

Honestly, other than legacy, I don't see why Create Homonculus is 5th level. Really would rather see it an off-shoot of Find Familiar, maybe just something you can create in downtime.

I agree with some of your points. I think most of the consolidation of spells into a single spell with multiple applications/options is a strength of 5e (Bigby's hand, I am looking at you).

Create homunculus (which is actually 6th level, not 5th), is not a throwback. Back in AD&D days, a 7th level wizard could make one with the aid of an alchemist. All you needed to cast were mending (1st level), mirror image (2nd level), and wizard eye (4th level) at one go. That would require a 7th level wizard in those days. You could even be lower level if you had the money and scrolls of the spells and you successfully cast them. Unless it was a spell in 4th edition (which I don't know much about), 5e is the first appearance of create homunculus as a spell.

Here are the details from the AD&D 2nd edition Monstrous Manual.

Edited to add screenshot

 

[DarkCrisis]

Not a lot of people here are going to get the Aresino Hall reference, I bet.

 

[Quickleaf]

So, I'm going through 5E, making my own tweaks and as I'm doing so, I'm finding some rather strange, funny and downright bizarre things in spells that I'd like to point out. Feel free to add in.

Slow and Haste are separate spells, but Enlarge/Reduce is one spell. Enhance Ability is six spells in one.

Create Homunculus is a 5th level spell. The Artificer has an ability to create one from 1st level.

Find Familiar is a spell, instead of a class ability. Same for the Paladin's Summon Steed. Compare to Ranger's Animal Companion.

Why is Wild Shape not a 2nd level spell, with the Moon Druid having either bonus castings or free "upcasting"?

You can call up a Tidal Wave (From Elemental Evil Player's Companion) in the middle of a dungeon.

The only telepathy spell available is at 8th level, but there are numerous class/race abilities that grant single-target telepathy at first level.

You can cast demiplane inside another demiplane to lead to a different demiplane (tesseract, anyone?).

The silence spell is an illusion, not a Transmutation - so what's really happening with the sound? Is it being noise-cancelled? Can it be "disbelieved"? If there are creatures immune to illusions in 5E, are they immune to this spell?

Hahah, oh is that all you've noticed so far? D&D magic is thoroughly inconsistent. The deeper you dive, the less sense it makes. Welcome to the rabbit hole!

 

[CreamCloud0]

Also, it seems a waste to keep Find Familiar a spell and is just a legacy thing of itself, and really seems like it should either go to a feat or class ability.

personally i feel like FF as a feat would be too expensive and existing as a class ability would be too restrictive, wizards shouldn't have a monopoly on familiars.

The Paladin's steed used to be a class ability and I can't remember in which version it went to a spell. I think its entirely a waste as a spell - especially Find Greater Steed, which is just insulting.

though i do think a somewhat modified find steed/greater steed would work well as a feat for the benefits of having a nigh permanant telepathic mount around.

 

[Minigiant]

Why is Wild Shape not a 2nd level spell, with the Moon Druid having either bonus castings or free "upcasting"?

To prevent other spellscasters from snatching it and doing the iconic spell better than druids with better buffs.

 

[Ferrousbones]

Create Homunculus is a 5th level spell. The Artificer has an ability to create one from 1st level.

Just a correction: The Artificer can create a type of homunculus from 2nd level.

The silence spell is an illusion, not a Transmutation

I never noticed that. Which means that it is inconsistent for creatures to be immune to thunder damage within that space, since if it isn't physically altering that space, it shouldn't physically interfere with the shockwave (thunder).

 

[Aldarc]

The Chamberlain Spell:

 

[Ferrousbones]

The Chamberlain Spell:

I don't remember seeing that spell in 5e.