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Chain Lightning

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Chain Lightning
  • Level: 6
  • School: Evocation
  • Class: Sorcerer, Wizard
  • Casting Time: Action
  • Range: 150 feet
  • Components: V, S, M (three silver pins)
  • Duration: Instantaneous

You launch a lightning bolt toward a target you can see within range. Three bolts then leap from that target to as many as three other targets of your choice, each of which must be within 30 feet of the first target. A target can be a creature or an object and can be targeted by only one of the bolts.

Each target makes a Dexterity saving throw, taking 10d8 Lightning damage on a failed save or half as much damage on a successful one.

Using a Higher-Level Spell Slot. One additional bolt leaps from the first target to another target for each spell slot level above 6.

Tactical Usage​

When to Choose Chain Lightning:

  • Excellent for hitting multiple clustered enemies
  • Strong choice against groups with consistent positioning
  • Valuable for high single-target damage with area potential
  • Essential for encounters with 3-4 priority targets

Target Selection Strategy:

  • Primary Target: Choose central enemy within range of others
  • Secondary Targets: Select up to 3 enemies within 30 feet of primary
  • Positioning Awareness: Account for enemy spacing and movement
  • Object Targeting: Include destructible objects or environmental features

Range Management:

  • 150-foot range to primary target allows safe casting
  • 30-foot chain range requires clustered enemies
  • No duplicate targeting prevents multiple hits on single enemy
  • Higher-level slots expand total target count

Spell Combinations​

Setup Synergies:

  • Web: Group enemies for optimal chain targeting
  • Black Tentacles: Restrain enemies in clustered positions
  • Wall spells: Force enemies into grouped formations
  • Hypnotic Pattern: Incapacitated enemies easier to position around

Damage Enhancement:

  • Hex: Additional damage if multiple targets hexed
  • Elemental Adept: Reroll lightning damage dice of 1
  • Empowered Spell: Reroll low damage dice (Sorcerer)
  • Twinned Spell: Create second chain starting from different target

Material Component Details​

Three Silver Pins:

  • Symbolism: Metal pins conduct electrical energy between targets
  • Cost: Moderate investment (several gold pieces)
  • Availability: Common in cities, crafted by metalworkers
  • Reusability: Same pins can be used repeatedly

Roleplay Opportunities:

  • Describe pins sparking with electrical energy before casting
  • Reference the conductive properties linking targets
  • Use pin positioning to trace the lightning chain pattern
  • Emphasize the precision required for multi-target electrical magic

Creator Notes​

Adjudication Guidance:

  • Primary target must be within 150 feet and in sight
  • Secondary targets must be within 30 feet of primary target
  • Each target can only be hit by one bolt per casting
  • Higher-level slots add additional bolts from primary target

Encounter Design:

  • Rewards tactical positioning and enemy grouping
  • High damage output can dramatically shift encounter balance
  • Forces consideration of enemy spacing and formation
  • NPCs should respect the threat of grouped positioning

Balancing Considerations:

  • 6th-level slot cost appropriate for high multi-target damage
  • Range limitations prevent easy multi-targeting
  • Single-hit limitation per target maintains balance
  • Dexterity saves allow counterplay for affected creatures

Environmental Interactions​

Electrical Effects:

  • Creates bright electrical display with multiple lightning bolts
  • May affect metal objects and electrical devices in area
  • Can start fires in dry conditions or flammable materials
  • Generates electromagnetic disturbances

Targeting Flexibility:

  • Can target objects as well as creatures
  • Useful for destroying multiple environmental features
  • May trigger electrical devices or magical items
  • Can clear multiple obstacles simultaneously

Visual Spectacle:

  • Creates dramatic branching lightning display
  • Illuminates large area with electrical discharge
  • Generates loud thunder from multiple impact points
  • Obvious demonstration of high-level magical power

Common Rulings & Clarifications​

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: Can I target the same creature multiple times? A: No, each target can only be affected by one bolt.

Q: What happens if there aren't enough targets within range? A: Unused bolts simply don't manifest - you don't get to redirect them.

Q: Can I target myself with a chain bolt? A: Yes, but this is usually tactically inadvisable.

Q: Do I choose the secondary targets or are they random? A: You choose all secondary targets within the range limitations.

Alternative Applications​

Environmental Destruction:

  • Multiple Barriers: Destroy several doors, walls, or obstacles
  • Siege Warfare: Target multiple defensive structures
  • Clearing Operations: Remove several environmental hazards
  • Mass Ignition: Start multiple fires for land management

Creative Problem-Solving:

  • Power multiple electrical devices simultaneously
  • Clear several blocked passages at once
  • Destroy multiple pieces of evidence
  • Create impressive magical displays for intimidation

Lightning Magic:

  • Lightning Bolt: Single-line electrical damage
  • Call Lightning: Repeated lightning strikes
  • Shocking Grasp: Touch electrical attack
  • Storm of Vengeance: Ultimate storm devastation

Multi-Target Damage:

  • Fireball: Area damage with different targeting
  • Meteor Swarm: Multiple area damage points
  • Circle of Death: Area necrotic damage
  • Disintegrate: Single-target high damage alternative

6th-Level Alternatives:

  • Disintegrate: Single-target massive damage
  • Globe of Invulnerability: Magical defense
  • Flesh to Stone: Single-target incapacitation
  • Mental Prison: Single-target psychological control

Scaling Analysis​

Level Progression:

  • Available at Level 11: High-level multi-target option
  • Damage Output: 45 average damage per target (significant threat)
  • Resource Investment: Major spell slot for encounter-ending potential

Target Scaling:

  • 6th Level: 4 total targets (1 primary + 3 secondary)
  • 7th Level: 5 total targets (excellent improvement)
  • 8th Level: 6 total targets (massive encounter impact)
  • 9th Level: 7 total targets (ultimate multi-target damage)

Long-Term Viability:

  • High damage remains threatening throughout all levels
  • Multi-target capability always valuable
  • Positioning requirements create tactical depth
  • Essential tool for high-level damage dealers

Narrative Flavor​

Extended Description: You hold the silver pins aloft while speaking words that crackle with barely contained electrical energy. As you point toward your primary target, a brilliant bolt of lightning erupts from your fingertips, striking with the force of a natural lightning bolt. But this is no ordinary lightning - the moment it makes contact, the electrical energy seeks out nearby targets like a living thing, branching into multiple secondary bolts that arc through the air with deadly precision, creating a web of destruction that connects multiple foes in a network of electrical devastation.

Sensory Details:

  • Visual: Branching network of brilliant electrical bolts
  • Auditory: Multiple thunder cracks as each bolt strikes
  • Electrical: Ozone scent and hair-raising static discharge
  • Kinesthetic: Power flowing through the conductive pins

Cultural Context: Chain Lightning represents mastery over one of nature's most dangerous forces, demonstrating the caster's ability to not only channel lightning but to direct its natural tendency to seek multiple paths. Different magical traditions may view this as elemental mastery, technological achievement, or divine authority over storms.