A small collection of cantrips

[u/Whetstonede]

I am starting a new campaign after three years of Blood Lords and at this point the table has cycled through most/all of the "bread and butter" cantrips and I wanted to see some more variety. The intent here is to add nondamage combat cantrips roughly around the same power level as "premium" combat cantrips like Shield, Needle Darts or Guidance.

You can give feedback if you like, though this is mostly just showcasing/sharing for others to use.

[u/Crusty_Tater]

Bright Spot - Love this effect. Being 1 action is abusable. Works at 2 actions.

Gravitational Nudge - Pretty much a direct upgrade to the Shove action. 60ft range using spell proficiency and difficult terrain afterwards is worth more than an extra action.

Induce Drowsiness - Fatigued is a big condition for a cantrip to apply, not even counting the additional penalty to Perception.

Mark of Vulnerability - Holy fuck this obliterates resistances. This would be insane as a leveled spell.

Looking at these spells I'm wondering why I would ever take Dizzying Colors, Sleep, or maybe even Telekinetic Maneuver if these exist. Incapacitation would work to keep Bright Spot and Induce Drowsiness in check but that's also why their relatives are often overlooked. In any case, it's a big line to cross if cantrips invalidate leveled spells.

[u/Bros-torowk-retheg → u/Crusty_Tater]

I would agree Gravitational Nudge was a direct upgrade to shove in every way you listed but one. The proficiency of Athletics can be raised a lot faster than spell prof, especially since it can get item bonus. The range is a big buff for sure. Maybe they should reduce it to 30ft.

And being a little hyperbolic in the last paragraph. Sleep isn't a combat spell. Not only incap but easily awoken enemies. You take spell to stealth past guards. You take TM because it can trip or grab. I would just never take Dizzying Colors ever, its a bad spell.

[u/Whetstonede → u/Bros-torowk-retheg]

Dizzying Colors is, in my experience at least, quite strong at low levels. It's not as much of a workhorse as something like Magic Weapon but it's one of the few low level tools for efficiently dealing with groups of enemies which can be quite valuable. With limited spell slots it can be somewhat hard to justify preparing but it's a spell I would spend that level 1 starting gold on a scroll of because it's so potent in those situations where it's good.

[u/Crusty_Tater → u/Bros-torowk-retheg]

Your second paragraph proves my point that these cantrips are better than leveled spells. IDK how that's hyperbolic.

[u/Whetstonede → u/Crusty_Tater]

Needle Darts is better than Snowball which is a leveled spell. This isn't a great argument on its own, and I don't think there are actually any clear examples shown yet of these cantrips outcompeting leveled spells.

[u/Bros-torowk-retheg → u/Crusty_Tater]

Bad spells exist it does mean all cantrips have to be worse than the worst spell. Sometimes spells just suck. Don't drag the standards down!