#of course there is going to be some sort of shapeshifting aberration happening

[worstloki]

actually i think people need to talk about loki's myth kids more because what is that. he's got one kid so fast he can run through the air/over water, he's got one that's prophesized to be able to swallow the sun, a daughter ruler of the death realm, one that grows so big they leave him in the ocean and he just. wraps around the entire planet. ???

[wearesorcerer]

[5e] 7th-Level Spells

or “You’re Taking Teleport, Right?”

7th-level spells are like higher level ones in that you only learn one of them (unless you give up better magic) and can’t use it terribly often. Unlike 8th- or 9th-level spells, though, you aren’t outright godlike for using these: they're the sorts of things the most accomplished caster of a generation should be able to, but they are still fundamentally within the realm of fantastical human capability.

So, why teleport? Why are you worrying about this spell above all others?

Teleportation is, by definition, the most effective means of transportation. It ignores all problems specific to transportation except something (or someone) else being right where you want to be. Almost all drawbacks are theoretical -- indeed, they vary from one type of teleportation effect to another, even within works. In D&D, it negates most obstacles in, to, and from a dungeon, making it the bane of many a DM’s existence.

Teleport happens to be the best teleportation spell within D&D.

In fact, most other teleportation spells exist to reduce dependency on teleport. For instance, TSR created plane shift some time after the Expert set (1981); before it existed, teleport could go across planes. Dimension door is the oldest example of a lower-level teleportation spell for the tactical movement aspect -- obviously a major point of appeal. Really, the only teleportation spell that isn’t strictly “teleport, but...” is gate.

Teleport is so handy that after 3rd edition, they bumped normal teleport from 5th-level (as it had been since OD&D) to 7th-level, at the expense of greater teleport (3.5)/teleport without error (2e and 3.0) entirely. Some of this has to do with D&D not being great with sympathetic magic; some of it is how video games deal with teleporting; most of it is 4e. Still, it’s not for nothing that it was this one spell that required so much reworking.

The question is not “What spell should I take?” but “Is this worth giving up teleport for?”

The Main List

conjure hezrou · crown of stars · delayed blast fireball · etherealness · finger of death · fire storm · plane shift · power word pain · prismatic spray · reverse gravity · whirlwind

This level’s list pretty much demonstrates the main parts of the Sorcerer list in general: boom-boom (five dedicated spells), crowd control (four spells), some utility (three), and the occasional other (two summons).

Conjure Hezrou: you summon...a stinky frog demon with a thing for necrophagy; it will gleefully serve as a tank, but can’t do much else, and will turn on you. Did you read my rant? Pass. With extreme prejudice. #killitwithfireball

Crown of Stars: pretty much sunbeam combined with light, but the flavor is dancing lights. Functionally, it has two advantages over sunbeam: it has a longer duration that it doesn’t require concentration (both as light). However, it doesn’t provide true sunlight or affect as many targets. This should be a 4th-level spell at the highest. (I bet I’m going to have to defend that later...)

Delayed Blast Fireball: I’m not really certain what the point of this spell is anymore. I only reference it as much as I do because it works with queuing and casters = fireball users. The main point of DBF was in conjunction with time stop, but since it’s concentration that doesn’t really fly. Otherwise...hooray, a time bomb? I’d rather have this as a metamagic effect.

Etherealness: or intangibility. You probably won’t need it as long as the spell provides, but even there plane shift can outdo this spell. That said, it doesn’t cost you anything in materials and you won’t arrive in a semi-random location. I mean, it’s by no means bad...

Finger of Death: deal lots of necrotic damage, zomble target. This is niftier than the 3.5 version (which was just a save or die effect), but there was a metamagic feat (Fell Animate) that applied to any damaging spell. Ask your DM to convert the metamagic feat for you.

Fire Storm: one of the few spells on this list that is primarily a Druidic spell (you can tell by the bit about it ignoring vegetation). The sculpting aspect of this spell is nice and it’s slightly bigger and more damaging than wall of fire without requiring concentration. This + elemental spell = conscientious blasting. For a boom-boom, not bad.

Plane Shift: the other half of teleport, which is a bit sad given that this is now the level at which you get teleport. Unfortunately, it has a costly material component to it and isn’t a ritual. Depending on the game, this could be as important as teleport or entirely irrelevant.

Power Word Pain: (CRUCIO! -.-) you torture someone and get... minor results? I swear, if you want to be this evil, there are lower-level spells that would let you do it better.

Prismatic Spray: RANDOM! The CC effects are cool, but toned done from 3.5 (in which they’d take effect immediately, rather than over several turns). The rest depends: 10d6 is nice damage, but if you roll the wrong type then you’re just out of luck (and Elemental Metamagic won’t help you much, either). Since charging is now a feat, the range on the cone isn’t bad, but I’d much rather have a burst. I want to like it, but...

Reverse Gravity: this is funnest spell on this list and one of the more fun 7th-level spells period, yet it’s only so-so. It’s mainly there to throw creatures skyward. Wouldn’t it be great if you could just alter gravity in areas and make the game Super Mario Galaxy?

Whirlwind: other than crown of stars, this is my personal favorite for this list -- and it doesn’t come with caveats. You simply create a miniature tornado and destroy people’s lives. HOORAY NATURAL DISASTERS!

If you’re not taking teleport, you might be considering etherealness or plane shift. If you’re not, you’ve got some pretty good options and some...not so good ones. Y’know, like always.

Just remember about conjure hezrou: dishonor!

You got that? Good.

Moving on.

Cleric (Divine Soul) List

conjure celestial · divine word · regenerate · resurrection · symbol · temple of the gods

Conjure Celestial: you summon a celestial of CR 4 or lower (5 if you spend a 9th-level spell slot). CR 4- celestials include the couatl (flying shapeshifter healer) and several winged animals (bull, lion, horse [pegasus]) to serve as combat mounts. (Did you know that Pegasi prior to 5e also had spells to detect alignment? Yep. More than just a mount.) Upping the spell to 9th gets you a battleforce angel (flying paladin), a felidar (sometimes winged cat-thing with truesight to which you could bond if the spell’s duration didn’t prevent that), hollyphant (ridiculous elephant celestial thing), or a unicorn. For the sake of comparison, a unicorn in 3.5 is CR 3 and a 4th-level summoning spell could call one. (Summoning is much weaker in 5e, but lasts a lot longer.) I’m not sure what to say. I mean, the couatl and the unicorn would be nice if you needed healing, but you can probably do that yourself.

Divine Word: creatures of your choice within 30 ft. that can hear you must save (Cha) versus various effects based on HP. This is overall better than the equivalents in 3.5 (which were alignment pole based) and it’s an “I win” button against extraplanar creatures (except aberrations) that fail their saves, which could stop a cult in its tracks. Pretty powerful.

Regenerate: target creature is now a troll/starfish! Woot woot! It’s kinda sad that you have to wait this long for it and that it competes with your second best rez, but you can replace that rez with this once you get true rez (which of course you will). This should be mandatory in a game that uses slashing weapons so much.

Resurrection: holding out for true resurrection is not really a great idea. On the one hand, you don’t want to have to ask someone else for this spell -- and chances are there will come a time when you need it. You can replace this spell with true rez later. On the other, there are so many other things you might want. Need I say more?

Symbol: you spend a buttload of money to make magic traps. Why are these Cleric spells? Dunno. Why are they spells and not magic items you craft? Also dunno. They’re useful, but not so much that I’d want them as anything besides rituals (which they aren’t). -2 Sorcerousness.

Temple of the Gods: holy shit, this is neat. If you need to seal yourself and your party away from the world while still being able to access the world, you want this spell. Like, take Mordenkainen’s magnificent mansion and make it more convenient. Great spell.

S’yeah, lots of lovely spells that you now have to decide upon vs. teleport. I do not envy you in making this decision.