Magnificent Mansion

← Back to Spell List

• Level: 7
• School: Conjuration
• Class: Bard, Wizard
• Casting Time: 1 minute
• Range: 300 feet
• Components: V, S, M (a miniature door worth 15+ GP)
• Duration: 24 hours

You conjure a shimmering door in range that lasts for the duration. The door leads to an extradimensional dwelling and is 5 feet wide and 10 feet tall. You and any creature you designate when you cast the spell can enter the extradimensional dwelling as long as the door remains open. You can open or close it (no action required) if you are within 30 feet of it. While closed, the door is imperceptible.

Beyond the door is a magnificent foyer with numerous chambers beyond. The dwelling's atmosphere is clean, fresh, and warm.

You can create any floor plan you like for the dwelling, but it can't exceed 50 contiguous 10-foot Cubes. The place is furnished and decorated as you choose. It contains sufficient food to serve a nine-course banquet for up to 100 people. Furnishings and other objects created by this spell dissipate into smoke if removed from it.

A staff of 100 near-transparent servants attends all who enter. You determine the appearance of these servants and their attire. They are invulnerable and obey your commands. Each servant can perform tasks that a human could perform, but they can't attack or take any action that would directly harm another creature. Thus the servants can fetch things, clean, mend, fold clothes, light fires, serve food, pour wine, and so on. The servants can't leave the dwelling.

When the spell ends, any creatures or objects left inside the extradimensional space are expelled into the unoccupied spaces nearest to the entrance.

Tactical Usage

Magnificent Mansion provides unparalleled strategic advantage as a secure base of operations, offering complete safety for rest, planning, and resource management in hostile territory. Cast it to create impregnable sanctuaries during extended dungeon exploration, allowing full recovery without risk of random encounters or enemy interference. The spell excels as a meeting point for complex operations, providing private space for sensitive planning, information sharing, and coordination among party members or allied groups. Use it to house rescued NPCs, valuable prisoners, or important witnesses who require protection but might slow down active operations. The mansion serves as an excellent medical facility with clean conditions and servant assistance for treating injuries, diseases, or curses that require extended care. Apply it as a diplomatic venue for sensitive negotiations where neutral, secure meeting spaces are required. The 24-hour duration covers most extended operations while providing time pressure that prevents indefinite delays.

Spell Combinations

Magnificent Mansion synergizes exceptionally well with divination spells cast from within its safety, allowing extended scrying, commune, or ritual casting without interruption or detection. Combine it with teleportation magic to create mobile command centers, establishing the mansion in strategic locations and teleporting key personnel in and out as needed. The spell works excellently with resurrection magic, providing appropriate ceremonial space and safety for the lengthy process of returning fallen allies to life. Use it alongside Creation or similar spells to furnish the mansion with specific equipment, tools, or resources needed for specialized operations. The mansion complements charm and suggestion spells used on guests, as the comfortable environment enhances persuasion attempts and social manipulation. Pair it with alarm spells or guards and wards for additional security layers, though the dimensional separation already provides substantial protection. The spell works well with simulacrum or other duplicate effects, allowing the mansion to serve as a headquarters while the caster operates elsewhere.

Material Component Details

The spell requires a miniature door worth at least 15 gold pieces, representing a significant but manageable investment for such a powerful effect. The miniature door must be crafted with appropriate detail and artistry, typically made from precious materials like ivory, hardwoods, or metals with intricate carving or metalwork. Many practitioners commission custom doors designed specifically for this spell, incorporating personal symbols, family crests, or magical motifs that influence the mansion's appearance. The door serves as both component and focus, with its design often affecting the resulting mansion's architectural style and aesthetic elements. Some spellcasters collect multiple doors with different designs, allowing them to create mansions with varying themes or purposes depending on the situation. The component is consumed during casting, making regular use expensive though justified by the spell's incredible utility and power. Specialized artisans who create these doors often develop reputations among high-level spellcasters, commanding premium prices for particularly beautiful or magically resonant designs.

Creator Notes

Magnificent Mansion represents one of the most powerful utility spells available, requiring careful consideration of its impact on campaign pacing and challenge balance. The spell can dramatically alter resource management dynamics by providing safe rest in any location, potentially trivializing environmental hazards or time pressure challenges. When designing adventures, consider how the mansion affects exploration balance and whether certain areas should have restrictions on extradimensional access. The spell creates excellent roleplay opportunities through the customizable environment and servant interactions, allowing players to express character personalities through mansion design. Be prepared for creative applications that use the mansion for storage, transportation, or as a base for complex schemes that might require adjudication. The 24-hour limit provides natural story pacing while preventing the mansion from becoming a permanent campaign element without continued investment. Consider how the spell interacts with other extradimensional effects and whether certain creatures or magics might breach its safety.

Environmental Interactions

The mansion exists in its own extradimensional space, making it immune to most environmental hazards, weather conditions, or external magical effects that affect the surrounding area. The entrance door can be placed in any location with sufficient space, though the door itself remains vulnerable to physical damage or magical effects that might destroy or dispel it. Areas with dimensional instability, planar boundaries, or strong magical interference might prevent the spell from functioning or cause unpredictable effects during casting. The mansion provides perfect environmental control regardless of external conditions, maintaining comfortable temperature, humidity, and air quality throughout its duration. Scrying or similar divination magic typically cannot penetrate the dimensional barrier, providing privacy and security from magical observation. The servants within the mansion are part of the spell's effect and cannot be affected by external magic or conditions, though they remain bound by the spell's limitations. Anti-magic fields prevent entry to the mansion but don't necessarily dispel it, creating interesting tactical considerations for the door's placement.

Common Rulings & Clarifications

The mansion can be designed with any floor plan desired, but the total space cannot exceed 50 contiguous 10-foot cubes regardless of the arrangement or room shapes chosen. The door can only be opened or closed by the caster and designated creatures, preventing unauthorized access even if the door's location is discovered. Objects created by the spell dissipate if removed from the mansion, preventing exploitation for resource generation or permanent item creation. The servants are invulnerable but cannot take any actions that would directly harm creatures, limiting their utility in combat or aggressive situations. The 100 servants can perform any task a human could accomplish within their limitations, providing substantial assistance for complex operations or maintenance. Creatures or objects left inside when the spell ends are expelled to the nearest unoccupied spaces, which could be dangerous in certain environments. The door becomes imperceptible when closed, making it effectively invisible and undetectable through normal means.

Alternative Applications

Beyond providing shelter and safety, Magnificent Mansion serves numerous strategic and creative purposes throughout various campaign scenarios. Use it as a mobile headquarters for organizations, allowing leadership to establish command centers in any location with appropriate privacy and security. The mansion excels as a research facility, providing clean, controlled conditions with servant assistance for extended magical or scholarly investigation. Apply it to create exclusive venues for important social events, diplomatic meetings, or ceremonial occasions that require impressive and secure locations. The spell proves valuable for housing and protecting important artifacts, documents, or magical items that require careful storage and security. Use it to establish temporary trading posts or safe houses in dangerous territories, allowing commerce or intelligence operations in hostile areas. The mansion can serve as a private workshop for crafting, item creation, or magical research that requires extended time and perfect conditions. Apply it to create rehabilitation centers for cursed individuals, providing safe containment and treatment space for dangerous magical afflictions.

Related Spells

Magnificent Mansion belongs to the highest tier of utility conjuration magic, sharing thematic elements with Mordenkainen's Faithful Hound, Rope Trick, and other shelter-creating spells. Compare it to Rope Trick, which provides similar safety but with much more limited space and duration. The spell relates to other extradimensional effects like Bag of Holding or Portable Hole, though the mansion provides livable space rather than simple storage. Consider it alongside other high-level utility spells like Mirage Arcane or Control Weather for comprehensive environmental control capabilities. The spell shares conceptual space with Creation and similar effects that produce complex objects or environments, though with different mechanisms and limitations. Demiplane provides similar extradimensional space creation but with different accessibility and customization options. The spell connects to other high-level spells that provide strategic advantages through environmental manipulation or resource creation.

Scaling Analysis

Magnificent Mansion does not scale with higher-level spell slots, maintaining its base effects regardless of the spell level used to cast it. The spell's power level is already near the peak of what utility magic can achieve, making additional scaling potentially unbalanced or unnecessary. Its effectiveness scales with the strategic sophistication of its users, becoming more valuable as players develop complex operations that benefit from secure base facilities. At the level where this spell becomes available, characters typically face challenges that justify its incredible utility and resource investment. The spell's value increases significantly in high-level campaigns where safe rest and secure meeting spaces become increasingly difficult to obtain through mundane means. Consider the spell's strategic impact in campaigns involving planar travel, where familiar dimensional spaces become invaluable anchors for complex operations. The spell remains relevant throughout high-level play because its fundamental utility - perfect security and comfort - never becomes obsolete regardless of character power.

Narrative Flavor

When cast, Magnificent Mansion begins with the careful placement of the miniature door, which grows and transforms into a full-sized portal that shimmers with dimensional energy. The door itself becomes an elegant entryway that reflects the caster's desired architectural style, glowing softly with welcoming light that hints at the luxury within. Stepping through the threshold reveals a magnificent foyer that exceeds expectations, with soaring ceilings, elegant furnishings, and an atmosphere of refined comfort that immediately puts visitors at ease. The mansion's rooms unfold according to the caster's imagination, each space perfectly appointed with furniture, decorations, and amenities that reflect the highest standards of luxury and functionality. Throughout the dwelling, nearly transparent servants glide silently through their duties, their forms shifting and adapting to their tasks while maintaining an otherworldly elegance that speaks to their magical nature. The air within carries subtle scents of fine foods, polished woods, and fresh flowers, while temperature and lighting adjust automatically to create perfect ambiance. As the spell nears its end, the mansion begins to fade gradually, with servants offering final courtesies before the entire extradimensional space dissolves gracefully back into the magical energies from which it was born.