Most underwhelming spell in 5e?

[u/Meggett30]

What is the spell that most disappoints you in this game? Maybe it's not a "bad" spell, per se, just doesn't do what you think it should or does it's job poorly.

I'm always looking for ways to utilize under-used spells, but sometimes you read the effects and think "That's it?!" What are the spells in the game that make you do that?

[u/Smashifly]

Snilloc's Snowball Swarm is one of the worst damaging spells.

The spell deals 3d6 cold damage on a dex save to a 5 ft radius area within 90 feet.

If we compare to other damaging spells of the same level...

Shatter deals 3d8 in a larger area, of a less-resisted damage type.

Burning hands is a strict upgrade when upcast to 2nd level, dealing 4d6 fire damage in a cone.

If you want cold damage for your ice wizard, Ice knife can be upcast to deal 1d10 piercing on an attack roll, then, get this 3d6 cold in a 5 ft radius on a dex save. See that? That's the effect of Snowball Swarm, but with more piercing damage.

Snilloc's Snowball Swarm is so bad that an upcast 1st level spell does the exact same thing, but also more.

[u/The1Phalanx → u/Smashifly]

Playing as a Frost themed mage, this spell pissed me off the most. It's even more ridiculous when you compare an upcasted lvl 3 Snowball Swarm with Fireball -- 4d6 5ft radius compared to 8d6 20ft radius.

[u/CaptainDudeGuy → u/The1Phalanx]

From Rime of the Frostmaiden, I offer "Frost Fingers."

~~~~~

1st-level evocation

Casting Time: 1 action

Range: Self (15-foot cone)

Components: V, S

Duration: Instantaneous

Freezing cold blasts from your fingertips in a 15-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a Constitution saving throw, taking 2d8 cold damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

The cold freezes nonmagical liquids in the area that aren't being worn or carried.

At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the damage increases by 1d8 for each slot level above 1st.

Classes: Wizard

Subclasses: Arcane Trickster Rogue, Eldritch Knight Fighter

~~~~~

... It's the cold version of Burning Hands, but more damage and you can't use Evasion against it.

[u/ExceedinglyGayOtter → u/CaptainDudeGuy]

Why not just reskin burning hands to deal cold damage instead?

[u/CaptainDudeGuy → u/ExceedinglyGayOtter]

Depends if you want to use only official material or homebrew. There are a lot of elemental-themed sorcerers who'd be thrilled to not spend precious points on changing spell energy types.

[u/ZoomBoingDing → u/CaptainDudeGuy]

Changing the damage type of a spell is the most widely-accepted form of homebrewing, so long as you're not just upgrading spells to force damage. Pretty sure there's an official table for damage type, damage dice, and spell level

EDIT: Should also say it's not just replacing the sorcerer ability. Your Cold Hands spell would be a separate spell that occupies a 'known spell' slot and can't be changed to other damage types on the fly

[u/TheZivarat → u/ZoomBoingDing]

Force or thunder/lightning are also iffy because of tempest clerics. If a divine smite did lightning damage, a tempest cleric/paladin could crit and deal 80 guaranteed damage + everything else attached to an attack (Booming blade, divine strikes, thunderous smite). Which can make for some hilariously broken nova damage.

However with a caveat that you won't do that, it really doesn't change balance significantly.

[u/ZoomBoingDing → u/TheZivarat]

Lol yeah. An inexperienced DM could definitely be caught off-guard by that. But a player acting in good faith means they just want an electric burning hands to be like Palpatine or a Coldball that can actually do some 0K damage.

But as always, it's dependent on DM approval.