Sorcerer Guide - Classes in Dungeons and Dragons 5e

The sorcerer is a true magical prodigy, an arcane spellcaster with in-born talent. This video guide will help you choose the best ability scores, skills, spells, and other build options to prepare your sorcerer to wield the magical energies that suffuse the cosmos. We’ll also look at famous examples of sorcerers from fiction, movies, television shows, and more to inspire your next character, and as well as roleplaying ideas to help develop your sorcerer’s background and personality.

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[SorryBones]

Played a wild magic sorcerer who was ashamed of how he couldn’t control it. Wanted so badly to be a wizard he carried around a “spell book” and bluffed every time he cast a spell to convince people he was one. The party knew it was BS but pretended to believe him as a joke.

“Hey Doonigan, you got a spell for this in your secret book?”
*page is a doodle of a mindflayer* “Nope.”

“Weird, this just looks like a diary entry...”
“It’s a cipher so dumbasses like you can’t decode my spells. Don’t read it though.”

“This is a shopping list.”
“No, it’s a spell materials list.”

[krystalfinlinson]

My favorite moment with a wild magic sorcerer was when we were level 2 or 3 and he rolled the result that would cast reincarnate on him if he died in a short time period and then the next turn he rolled a again and exploded in a fireball died and reincarnated on the spot.

[agsilverradio]

Harry Potter, is called a wizard, but is actually a sourcorer.

Dr.Strange is called a sorcerer, but is actually a wizard.

[phillipta]

1:30 Introduction 7:20 Ability Scores 9:19 Potential Races You Might Want To Pick 10:54 Proficiency 12:18 Certain Skills Recommended 14:34 Spell Save DC/Spell Attack Modifier

15:18 What Makes The Sorcerer Different/17:10 Metamagic

21:22 What Kind Of Sorcerer Do You Want To Be From Level 1 (Starting with Draconic Bloodline Sorcerer) 22:25 Wild Magic Sorcerer 23:50 Shadow Sorcerer 25:04 Divine Soul Sorcerer
25:54 Storm Sorcerer

26:41 Spells 28:25 Damage Spells 29:37 Battle Field Control (Crowd Control) 30:10 Utility

33:07 Ideas for Background

[galnium]

In my early days of D&D I played a wild sorcerer who was completely oblivious to the potential of his power. Instead of working to figure out the origin of his magic or how he can wield it, he just tried to figure out how to turn into a potted plant. He was overjoyed when his wild magic ended up turning him into one.

[Shifty_]

Every time I watch one of these videos I want to make a new character using the class in the video...I guess that means you guys are doing it right.

[eckroattheeckroat]

subtle spell can actually be very good. It allows you to cast within the area of a silence effect, and it makes any spell without material components uncounterable, because the rival spell caster will have no indication of the casting. I believe there were sage advice rulings from Jeremy Crawford on both uses.
My DM also tends to make NPCs very suspicious of any casting they witness because in a world of magic, he reasons people would view a caster chanting arcane words and drawing symbols in the air like we might view someone brandishing a weapon or pouring a strange powder into someone's drink. It raises eyebrows.

[paulh]

Our gaming group loves one-shot adventures. One session that was especially memorable was a temple so radiated with magical energy that any time a player or NPC used a spell, we rolled on the Wild Magic Table. Every fight was chaotic and fun!

[TheEiinar]

Depending on adversaries, Subtle spell can be really powerful in combat. Since letting someone cast without any somatic or verbal components will make it close to impossible to
counterspell them.
Immensely frustrating if the BBEG just teleports out, and the a party arcane caster goes: “I cast counterspell”. and GM goes, you never saw a spell being cast.

[thatoneperson]

I once joined a new group whose characters were level 6. I rolled up my first ever sorcerer and joined the game. First spell he casts is a wild magic surge. I rolled. Fireball.
My character was no more.

[meeko]

i kinda love the theme of the Phoenix Sorcery. You hover in a storm of fire and assume a god-like state. I think it's awesome

[nason.mcglinn]

I feel like you underestimated the power a charisma character casting subtle mass suggestion while casually holding their crystal focus in their pocket amongst a crowd. Or the fact that it is a feature unique only to sorcerers. Even an Arcane Trickster with greater invisibility has to chant verbal components in a clear voice, which would be easy to hear. Subtle sorcerers with urchin background can sneak up with a rogue (or just be the rogue, honestly), twin greater invisibility the both of them, walk in to a room and (depending on if the npcs can pass a check to hear the two) cast a spell without anyone even understanding how it's happening (depending on spell descriptions. Obviosuly rays and spells like fireball have a line pointing back to the caster).

Also, the ability to blatantly ignore the effects of silence for 1 spell point at high levels is awesome. Or the ability to cast a spell against someone while underwater or being strangled. The argument can also be made that a Subtle Sorcerer with Greater Invisibility is immmune to Counterspell thanks to Xanathar's rules on "Perceiving a Caster at Work". Even without Greater Invisibility if the sorcerer is using subtle on a spell without a material comonent (If you can't percieve the caster is casting a spell, you can't trigger the reaction with "when you see a creature within 60 ft cast a spell" because you simply don't see a creature casting a spell)

Honestly, a lot of it depends on how "real" your dm is with the roleplay. For example, two guards bar your entry to the town proper due to a crime of some sort. Sure, you can charm person one of the guards, but before you even cast the spell you chant and wave about. That other guard's not going to sit there and ask questions about what you did to their buddy. They are probably going to pressume hostility and attack. However, walking up to one of the guards while subtle casting Charm Person (only has v and s) then saying "Buddy! I haven't seen you in ages!" is both imperceptible and a free gamble (if they pass the save and don't regard you as a "friendly acquaintance" just do a "oh, sorry friend! Thought you were someone I knew." Sure it realies on some social checks, but it's a good thing charisma is your highest stat)

That was longer than I meant it to be. I just really love Subtle spell. Sorcerers sacrifice versitality and spells on hand (high level Wizards have more spells prepared then sorcs have known at level 20) for the ability to cast a small pool of spells better than other classes can cast those same spells (Twin Polymorph at level 8 to make 2 T Rex's, ie.). For 1 spell point Subtle adds a HUGE amount of versitality for a class that severely lacks in it

Tl;DR An Urchin Sorcerer with Subtle and Quickened as their first two metamagics makes an arguably better (or at least more spellcastery) "Arcane Trickster" than the actual archetype, and it's awesome.

[ariongekkota]

When I saw divine soul I knew there was a thing I had to do. I'm now playing a "white mage" in one of my games.

[RazzlePhoxx]

I'm currently playing a Kobold "dragon" sorcerer who believes he is a true gold dragon punished by bahamut to hunt the forces of Tiamat. I have been playing him as believing his sorcery comes from bahamut himself so he is practically a cleric but I didn't like the abilities a cleric or divine sorcerer got

[jaxryan]

I loved the ideas about sorcerer spells being connected to emotions and memories and causing nose bleeds and such

[knightghaleon]

The way I fixed the storm sorcerer was I told my player that if they wanted to have the effect of other spells but substitute the damage with lightning damage, they could. So Fireball because lightning ball, firebold became stormbolt, and so on. It was better than limiting them to the few lighting spells.

[alexanderfish]

red dragonborn, draconic ancestry fire based sorceror... best character i ever played.

[chillinon]

One extra feat I'd like to recommend is either Magic Initiate: Sorcerer for a permanent extra spell known that you can the use with your regular slots OR Warlock for Mage Armour and get pretty much the same thing + access to Eldritch Blast.
It helped me a ton in getting the spell list I wanted for my Divine Soul bro :)

[eduwendigo]

Stop thinking just fireball when you think sorcerer. Think Twin Haste, Still Counterspell on counter fights, Heightned control spells (Slow, Banishment S2...) so many possibilities.

[TomboyDudetteX]

In an undead-themed campaign, I have a backup character who is a flesh golem, (essentially Frankenstein's monster as a race) whose sorcerous power comes from all of the deceased people she was sewn together with. However, that manifests itself as being a wild magic sorcerer, and whenever she loses control she literally comes apart at the seams. She's adorable.