Welcome to the Lightning Lure spell breakdown! When it involves lassoing your foes, you’ll be shocked to seek out that the Sword Coast Adventure Guide brought over more cantrips than simply Green-Flame Blade! Lightning Lure maybe a spell that evaded our lists of best Wizard, Warlock, and Sorcerer cantrips… also as Cantrips generally. That doesn’t mean it isn’t a diamond within the rough; Dungeons and Dragons 5E features a lot of fantastic options for cantrips within the early-to-mid game, and now you’re getting to learn a new one!
You create a lash of lightning energy that strikes at one creature of your choice that you just can see within range.
The target must succeed on a Strength saving throw or be pulled up to 10 feet during a line toward you then take 1d8 lightning damage if it’s within 5 feet of you.
Lightning Lure 5e
- Duration: 1 action
- at a distance of 15 feet
- Parts: V
- Time: Instant
- Sizing: Yes
- A wizard, sorcerer, warlock, arcane trickster, and eldritch knight are among the spellcasters
On a higher level
If you upgrade this spell to the 5th level (2d8), the 11th level (3d8), and the 17th level (4d8), its damage increases by 1d8.
Lightning Lure may be a hybrid utility/damaging spell for our three primary arcane spellcasters. When an unlucky creature within 15 feet fails a Strength saving throw, it is dragged 10 feet straight towards the caster. You will get a 1d8 shock if that happens to be within 5 feet of the caster.
There’s an increase of 1d8 at levels 5th, 11th, and 17th, for a maximum of 4d8. No problem! This cantrip provides extra travel utility at the cost of a relatively low amount of single-target damage. Here are some reasons why this is an honest investment for a cantrip slot.
Lightning Lure doesn’t require preparation because it is a cantrip. Neither concentration nor resources are expended when it’s cast. Lightning Lure has the added benefit of not requiring Somatic components. This spell will jolt them and pull them towards you, as long as you speak.
Lightning Lure has a problem in that… it forces you, a caster, into melee combat. There are builds available for casters that can be used in melee. But most Wizards and Sorcerers lack the health to duplicate the build. For warlocks on the other hand, their melee builds are quite strong. But spending one of their spell slots on Lightning Lure leaves them with fewer spell slots for cantrips that deal high damage.
surprising
There are a surprising number of situations when the spell is beneficial, but it is situational. Combined with any area spell you have, it can cause your opponents to be forced into traps, like Cloud of Daggers or a tripwire. As a melee-ranged ally, it can pull enemies into positions where they’re more easily flanked or surrounded, keeping them from escaping and increasing your ally’s damage output. Or if your Barbarian is out of reach of the enemy and your roof is low, you’ll pull him down.
The spell’s usefulness is overshadowed as time goes on by abilities that allow you to control the battlefield far better, to close the gap between you and your opponent more efficiently, and to deal more electrical damage to them. Lightning Lure becomes less useful after being relegated to something you use to pull an enemy towards you once they are out of range of movement action, and you actually want them to be in range of your action next round.
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