Spell Categories

A helpful way for a wizard to analyze his arsenal is by assigning his spells to various categories. The following system uses six categories based on a spell's use in combat situations. The categories include:

Defensive 1. This category of spells provides protection from harm. It includes spells that make the subject more difficult to hit, increase his resistance to damage, and shield him from various types of opponents. Usually, a wizard casts this type of spell on himself or on his allies.

Defensive 2. This category of spells hinders an opponent's ability to attack without directly causing damage to the opponent. It includes various charm, hold, and blinding spells, along with spells that add penalties to an opponent's attack rolls. Usually, a wizard casts this type of spell directly on one or more of his opponents.

Offensive 1. This category of spells increases the chance to inflict damage on an opponent. It includes spells that give bonuses to attack and damage rolls, as well as those that increase strength. It does not include spells that directly inflict damage. Usually, a wizard casts this type of spell on himself or his allies.

Offensive 2. This category of spells directly inflicts damage on opponents. It includes spells that cause an opponent to lose hit points, such as chill touch and lightning bolt, spells that cause creatures to lose levels of ability, such as energy drain, and spells that cause damage to specific creatures, such as transmute water to dust. Usually, a wizard casts this type of spell on one or more of his opponents, although exceptions include spells that create or summon entities to fight on the caster's behalf, such as monster summoning.

Reconnaissance. This category reveals information about opponents or provides warnings about their actions.

Special. This catch-all category includes spells that have no specific offensive, defensive, or reconnaissance use in combat.

How do you decide which spells belong to which categories? It is not an exact science, but rather a generalization based on a spell's most common use in combat situations. For instance, fireball can be used to destroy inanimate objects, but in combat situations, it is usually used to inflict damage on an opponent; therefore, it is an Offensive spell -- Offensive 2, to be exact. Light is helpful for finding the way in a dark cavern, but in combat, it can be used to blind opponents to reduce their attack rolls, making it a Defensive spell-- more precisely, a Defensive 2 spell. (For quick reference, it may be helpful to note each spell's category next to its name on the character sheet.)

If a spell seems to fit into more than one category, that is to be expected. Remember, the point is not to draw rigid boundaries, but to learn to think in terms of a spell's function as opposed to its level or flashy name. As an illustration, here are categorizations of some 1st- and 2nd-level spells from the Player's Handbook.

Defensive 1: Protection from evil, armor, shield, mirror image, invisibilty, blur

Defensive 2: Color spray, enlarge, light, grease, shocking grasp, taunt, wall of fog, deafness

Offensive 1: Spectral hand, strength

Offensive 2: Burning hands, shocking grasp, chill touch, flaming sphere, stinking cloud

Reconnaissance: Alarm, comprehend languages, message, detect undead, ESP

Special: Dancing lights, erase, hold portal, jump, mending, spider climb, wizard mark

The various categories are discussed in detail in the following sections. Players should use the information to help them assign their spells to categories, which in turn will enable them to choose the best spells for their wizards to memorize in a particular situation

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