Wizard is Broken | Dungeons and Dragons 5e Guide

Great video, one correction I noticed is that bladesingers get prof with one “one-handed melee weapon”, it doesn’t have to be simple though.

I loved Minthara's commentary on Gale in BG3. that she wouldn't waste time getting to know him because he's a wizard and he'd probably be killed soon anyways

Interesting take on a particular Wizard subclass....

I know you don't cover homebrew (more than understandable), but I built Matt Mercer's Hemomancy Wizard, theoretically ending at level 20 with 20 Constitution, 20 Intelligence, Tough & 222 HP. Right out the gate you can use your body as an Arcane Focus if you're missing at least 1 HP and can receive 1D10 necrotic damage per 50GP of a spell components cost if you cast a spell (say, Chromatic Orb) without the component (such as the Crystal Orb). Perfect example at high levels is the Clone spell.

Thing is: the funny thing about the Clone spell is that the diamond needed to create the clone is consumed, but the vessel can be reused after you pop out of it. So if you consume your own HP for the 1,000 GP diamond you'll take an average of 110 HP & a maximum of 200HP with your max HP being 222. That means that in downtime, all your character has to do is create the 5,000 GP vessels (which isn't hard at all with massive funds you'd have by then & Fabricate). The same could be done with any spell of 1,000 GP or less components in the Wizard's spell list like Plane Shift (instantly get out of a fight or your own Demiplane hideouts without the need of a 250 GP Tuning Fork), Create Undead, True Seeing, Teleportation Circle (negate the 18,250 GP you have to spend casting 50 GP a day every day for a year), Magic Circle + Planar Binding (an army of Fire Elementals for almost a year is fun), Scrying & who knows how many others.

Now true, most of these are best used outside of combat when you can rest to get the slot & HP back rather than inside a fight, in addition to the fact that Wish makes this all useless at higher levels. HOWEVER, the best high GP spells are still outside of combat spells & not only do you only get 1 Wish per day, you could potentially loose Wish.

I play Necromancy Wizard as Onmyoji...❤❤

I really appreciate how detailed this Video is

Especially the Wizard Sub Classes

1.25 playback speed is a gift

Might wanna reign in your background music, it seems to like fighting you for auditory dominance.

“Dont let it be you” bwahahahahahaha

Pssh back in my day...
My wizards had 1D4 hit die and it was rolled at first level plus con bonus...

In my campaign I'm playing a wizard. My DM is all for bending some rules here and there. I told him from the get go that I wanted to use firearms in the playthrough. Those don't exist in his created world. That is until my 20int wizard conducted enough research alongside his master. Now my character has tapped into the potency of his arcane magic, harnessing all forms of electricity magic while also wielding an electrically charged magnetized slug rifle. ⚡️ 🌩

I started a lvl 20+ campaign recently. As a player, I haven’t used a wizard since 3rd edition. Way more options this time around, but I’m going with a necromancer. Should be a blast.

Wizards are like Batman, give them prep time and they will without question destroy you.
Especially if they have simulacrum or wish with simulacrum.

The background music makes me want to roll a concentration check

The background music is obnoxious, I think the video would be better with no music.

Just for the record, Power world kill is generally a really weak 9nth level spell. Its situationally usefull but you only get 1 9nth level spell a day, why would you take power word kill that at most kills one enemy, as opposed to meteor swarm that can easily kill dozens?

It also does nothing to any enemy with over 100HP, meaning the big bad boss monsters you would want to use it on the most you cant.

Considering there is no way for players to know what HP enemies have Power word kill is the easiest 9nth level spell to whiff completely.

I prefer doing this with my wizards
14 necromancer
5 undead warlock pact tome, aspect of moon
1 shadow sorcerer

Wizards are only squishy if not built right. They can be as tough as they come quite easily.

Wizard is, and has always been, my favorite class in D&D. As a fan of fantasy settings, I always gravitate to these characters first, whether they are powerful personages, like Elminster and Halaster Blackcloak (one of my favorite NPCs I got to act out 😁), or less potent practitioners, like Mathew from the Rose of the Prophet Series, or Calandryll of the Godwars series. Sure, there's something to be said about making it to the end of progression, and being able to do things some other characters depend on gods/patrons to do, or simply never can, but I just love the theme. I'm certainly not the smartest person in a room, and I try my best to frown on metagaming, but standing in the room, leaning on my staff, trying to leverage things I know, and powers I've unlocked, while everyone else yammer about how they want to do things is fun. Also, magic is fun!

I'm also a total lore hound, on account of the massive amounts of time where playing game wasn't available, or my long-term battle with perpetual DM-itus, where knowing helps, and the mighty wizards of the setting are usually fun. My first 5e character was a simple wizard on the run from his mentor, and my two favorites were variations of the same thing. One of my favorite Backgrounds is Awakened Clone, from Heroes of Baldur's Gate, which is essentially the Clone of a mighty archmage that they never used, or that was defective. Anyway, even without their soul moving into this body, and animating it, it "wakes up". No memories, or abilities, of the original, and now it has to set out and find our why it exists, and who it's meant to be. My first version was a forced clone of Khelban Blackstaff Arunsun, since he's dead in 5e. Was made by one of the Manshoons, in an effort to create a Khelban he could control, and manipulate Water-repellent, but he died before it could happen, and the Blackstaff had a curse placed on him to foil such efforts. Still, he had some of those powers, and people who knew him could recognize him, to different appreciation. A later reskin took out the middle man, and simply was another Manshoon. The Manshoon Wars revealed how there were a number of stasis Clones, and the problems that could cause. This one was made, but the Spellplague prevented him from waking up, and when he did later, Mansion was still active. He was trapped in one of a Manshoon's hidden caches for 12 years, with only the resources (books, diary, food) of that place, until he eventually figured out how to port out with a ring. He had some idea of who "Manshoon" had been, but nor that he sort of was one, and borrowed the name Asmuth for adventuring. A "real" Manshoon discovered him, and decided he wanted a fresh body, not missing an arm, so became an enemy, but other things that could respond to Manshoon also worked for Asmuth, to some really cool results, and other shenanigans ensued. It's just another reason I like wizards; few other beings could allow for such backstories, in circumstances where such involved backstories are welcomed.

The highest level wizard I ever played was in second edition it was a divination specialist I utilize the spell foresight an awful lot

I don't hear anything?

My great wizard trick with a wizard came from an earlier edition. I had magic items that gave me high resistances to element magic and spells to do the same. While in a tavern of baddies, I prepped my resistances and cast fireball max level at ground zero. I walked out of the tavern; they didn't.

Love these videos. Playing BG3 right now and I love watching these too

I've got a 20th level Abjuration Wizard.
The Arcane Ward is pretty strong, but the proficiency bonus to dispel and counter spell is way strong. I counter most spells at 3rd or 4th.
Last session I used Timestop to help our Monk out of a Forcecage with Anti-magic field, then stood around the group to basically null any spell from the 4 liches we were fighting. 😂

I created a wiz for a lvl 20 game and it was tons of fun. Chronurgist 19/twilight cleric 1 with tons of feats. +14 initiative modifier (dex, int from chronurgist, alert feat) with advantage thanks to twilight cleric, enhance ability as an at will spell to be able to cast all the time, usually using wisdom for those juicy advantage on perception tests, also skill expert feat in perception.

The end result is initiative of 1d20+14+1d8 from gift of alacrity spell with advantage from twilight cleric (average initiative roll around 32-33), a 29 passive perception check, 300 ft darkvision also from twilight cleric, and wielding staff and shield (war caster feat, shield prof from cleric), with an end AC of 27 or 32 with the shield spell.

Once combat starts, switch enhance ability to intelligence to get advantage on counterspell or dispel magic checks.

And then you're still a full wizard and chronurgist, so there's two of you (simulacrum), you can't die (clone hidden in your demiplane), and the list goes on and on.

Why summon the remote when I can just say: "Hi jarvis, please play amouranth on twitch" and weird stuff appears automatically. With grreat power comes great responsibility. A good voice control can match some familiars.

I'd like to point out that War Magic Wizard + Yuan-ti allows you to make a character who can cast an AoE save-or-suck spell like Sickening Radiance and stand in it with almost no chance of ever getting hit by it. War Magic gets some pretty strong boosts to saving throws against spells. Add in advantage against those saves from Yuan-ti and it gets kinda weird.

I've been wanting to make a Wizard's spellbook a Longsword. Runes etched into the blade, and several spell-circles as part of the hand guard. true this idea might fit an Eldrich Knight better but the idea still sounds fun to play with as instead if rare inks you'd most likely need special gem/stone/ore dust.

Awesome video! Thank You!

‘Dump your wisdom score’… um, what? I would argue a wizard should dump STR. Wisdom is too important to all classes to dump.

Bro, not every class is broken. Lol!

This wasn’t 20th level but I played a wizard that went with his party to gain favor of the gods and we had to fight in a back to back arena slogfest where we fought boss after boss and by the time we got to the final boss, my abjuration wizard was the only one left standing and he successfully 1v1ed them by kiting, shutting down their offense and polymorphing into a giant ape when they got too close. It was so epic!

A wizard should never choose wisdom as a dump stat imo. Far too many things call for wis saves and you do not have the HP to fail many. It also makes sense for a scholarly mage to learn from experiences and gain in that stat. Personally I'd lose out on strength. If you're in a position to use it you're probably in melee and already dead. Charisma also makes sense as someone who spends their lives with their head in the books likely never practices social skills. Personally my second highest stat is either con (every HP matters!) or dex for precious AC in early game, followed by wisdom
As soon as possible purchase the common magic item, the enduring spell book (if your DM doesn't just give it to you at character creation) If purchasing anew you'll have to rescribe your spells into it but the book itself is immune to water damage, becoming dirty or easily damaged or destroyed.

Your voice is really soothing

When I visualize a Wizard casting a spell I see something similar to 'Doctor Strange' and certain anime where when a mage is casting a spell they create magic circles that float in the air, normally in front of their hands where they are directing the spell, and the more powerful the spell the larger and more intricate the circles get even to the point they take a 3D shape around the caster made with multiple circles incorporated into it. The circles are basically the mathmagical formulas and equations needed to cast a spell cause Wizards had to study and practice to tap into the weave of magic in order to preform their spells. Also if the spell is the creation of a certain Wizard who developed it their name is part of the formula as well. Finally each school of magic has it's own layout and even color.
So a Wizard casting a cantrip would produce a magic circle the size of their hand, a 1st level spell would be the diameter from their finger tips to their elbow, and the circles would just get bigger and more complicated.

How do I find out how many spell slots I have

Bladesingers after lvl 6 work exceptionally well with the new Dragonborn from Fizban. You can take the attack action and replace both attacks with a cantrip and your breath weapon combo giving you great damage at 10 ft range like chill touch and toll the dead. and you can also fly over your enemies to avoid any ground effects.

I am playing a level 15 Enchantment Wizard. She is the most powerful character I have ever played. I don't do much damage but battlefield control is second to none.

Wise should olnly be used to copy spells like simulacrum and sutch anything else is a rediclus wast.

Aight story time we just entered the bbeg's lair it was this huge build up from the beginning and it was like a castle of sorts and we got to a dining room he was in now it was all melee except for one wizard so of course he tells us to cover him as usual but then he says he casts glyph of warding with the trigger being the number one then he does it again and 2 and again 3 and then just chucks them all at him and just speedreads and says 123 and boom took off a third of his life then the barbarian just chucked him out of the castle somehow and off the cliff it was priceless seeing the dm's face as he described the long awaited bbeg becoming mist on a rock at the bottom after about 12 turns

Illusion, at low levels Phantasmal Killer Rocks.

Level 20 Necromancer Wizard Elf desperate to get his hands on Wish (DM banned the spell in the game sadly). Picked up Counterspell as his Signature Spell. Crafted a Robe of the Archmage. Found a Tome of Clear Thought. Now, he's in a new campaign centuries later, sitting at a bar as an NPC, constantly drinking, constantly drunk with an intelligence of 30. This powerful mother fucking Archmage is the town drunk because he never got Wish to reshape reality to bring his dead daughter back to life. (Corpse was utterly destroyed with the likes of Disintegrate and died 200 years before the original campaign began.)

I'm going to apologize for not subscribing sooner as I have seen several of your videos already but I thought that I had already subbed. I just happened to glance at it and saw the Subscribe button was still red and I grimaced in embarrassment. Thankfully, that allowed me to crit on the Subscribe button and attune to the notification bell.

Nah you said Wizards cant be tanks. They can be ANYTHING. Abjuration, Bladesinger, War Wizard, (id argue even conjuration but thats super niche). They can all be built to be tanks. Its awesome

Were they inately gifted?
Sorcerer intensyfies

I like dwarf wizards. That armor bonus is the chef's kiss.

"a great wizard dies precisely when he means to" this is how we get Liches

Blowing things us is entertaining, but there's nothing like controlling the battlefield and making it your own.