Evocation is one of the basic schools of magic. It involves spells that mainly work to create elemental-type damage and blast your opponents to bits. In the sections below, we will cover some of the best evocation spells available, which classes have access to them, and how they work.
Table of Contents
Cantrip
Cantrips are available to full casters starting at level 1. For half-casters and quarter-casters, cantrips are usually not available without taking the Fighting Style Blessed Warrior or a feat.
Eldritch Blast
This is the bread and butter of a warlock. Given the limited number of spells you can cast per day, even if your party takes frequent short rests, most spell-oriented warlocks (not Hexblades) prefer to rely on eldritch blast in combat and save their valuable spells for social or utility spells. Several Eldritch Invocations can be used to modify your eldritch blast, and when combined with hex, you can be as powerful as a weapon-user.
Available to Warlocks
Level 1
Level 1 spells are available to full casters beginning at level 1. For half-casters and quarter-casters, they become available between levels 2-3
Faerie Fire
This evocation spell is an excellent way to give your allies advantage in their attacks while also exposing any enemies who may be trying to remain hidden and invisible.
Available to Bards, Druids, Light and Twilight Domain Clerics, Artificers, Archfey Warlocks
Guiding Bolt
This evocation spell is fantastic because it deals a decent amount of radiant damage while also giving someone else an advantage in their next attack against your foe. Support casters such as Druids and Clerics can deal damage in this manner without feeling selfish for using their turn to do something other than assist their party members.
Available to Clerics, Celestial Warlocks, Oath of Glory Paladins
Healing Word
This is a handy healing evocation spell that functions as a bonus action. On the same turn, you can heal someone and cast a cantrip.
Available to Bards, Clerics, Druids, Alchemist Artificers
Level 2
Level 2 spells are available to full casters starting at level 3. For half-casters, they start at level 5. For quarter-casters, they become available at level 7.
Darkness
If you have access to the Eldritch Invocation Devil’s Sight and consistently make attack or spell attack rolls, this spell has a fantastic strategy. When enemies cannot see you, you have advantage on attack rolls. That’s an automatic Sneak Attack if you’re a Rogue. Even if you aren’t, casting darkness on something you’re wearing allows you to remain obscured while firing arrows or magic.
If you’re not a Warlock, you’ll have to spend a feat to get Devil’s Sight, but it’s well worth it. You’re unstoppable if you also have the feat Elven Accuracy.
Available to Sorcerers, Warlocks, Wizards, Circle of the Land (Swamp) Druids, Oathbreaker Paladins
Scorching Ray
This is a great evocation spell for people who can frequently get advantage on their ranged spell attacks. Even at 2nd level, you get three rays that can be shot at the same target or different ones. When you upcast scorching ray, you get additional rays per level. Each ray does a surprisingly decent amount of damage (average of 6 points), and when you fire all of them at the same target, you can take a big chunk out of your enemy.
Available to Sorcerers, Wizards, Fiend and Genie Warlocks, Light Domain Clerics, Artillerist Artificers, Circle of Wildfire Druids
Level 3
Level 3 spells are available to full casters starting at level 5. For half-casters, they start at level 9. For quarter-casters, they become available at level 13.
Fireball
Fireball is an excellent way to deal with overcrowding in a battle. It has a 150-foot range and deals decent damage at 3rd level. If you can drop this at the start of a fight before you rush in, you can likely take out or severely damage most of your opponents before they even draw their weapons.
Available to Sorcerers, Wizards, Fiend and Genie Warlocks, Light Domain Clerics, Artillerist Artificers
Sending
Is this one of the most powerful evocation spells? That is dependent. If you’re doing a dungeon crawl or otherwise don’t interact with NPCs frequently, no sending isn’t for you. If you need to communicate with or update NPCs on a regular basis, this spell is a must-have. Keep in mind that you only have 25 words per casting, so don’t be a chatterbox!
Available to Bards, Clerics, Wizards, Great Old One Warlocks, Peace Domain Clerics
Level 4
Level 4 spells are available to full casters starting at level 7. For half-casters, they start at level 13. For quarter-casters, they become available at level 19. This is the highest level for quarter-casters.
Otiluke’s Resilient Sphere
This evocation spell is the hamster ball of D&D. Upon casting it a creature is locked inside. They can’t be harmed, magically or otherwise, and they can’t harm anyone outside of it. It can function as either a protective spell or an offensive spell, depending on who you choose to target. It can become quite amusing since the person inside can roll the ball around, and the ball can be moved (or kicked) by outside creatures.
Available to Wizards, Oath of Redemption Paladins, Artificers, Peace Domain Clerics
Wall of Fire
This evocation spell only has one use, but it’s effective. You raise a large wall between you and your opponents that they must cross if they want to attack. You choose which side is hot, so you don’t end up frying your buddies.
Available to Druids, Sorcerers, Wizards, Fiend and Celestial Warlocks, Light and Forge Domain Clerics, Artillerist Artificers
Level 5
Level 5 spells are available to full casters starting at level 9. For half-casters, they start at level 17. This is the highest level for half-casters.
Holy Weapon
Holy weapon is an iconic paladin spell because it adds radiant damage to all of your strikes, which scales with Divine Smite and causes your weapon to shed light in a massive radius. This evocation spell is an excellent way to overcome non-magical weapon resistance or to pile on the damage. You can end the spell and cause more damage, as well as potential blindness, but you shouldn’t do so unless you absolutely need to do something else with your concentration.
Available to Clerics, Paladins
Wrath of Nature
This is a fantastic evocation spell if you’re in a forest or a similar overgrown area. Unfortunately, most DMs aren’t considerate enough to inform you of the site ahead of time, and higher-level parties tend to move around a lot during a single session. It is, however, fascinating to consider all of the ways your trees, rocks, and grass can trip up your enemies.
Available to Druids, Rangers
Level 6
Level 6 spells are available to full casters starting at level 11.
Chain Lightning
You might want to zap a few people close together without accidentally torching your melee allies. You could tell them to move out of the way of your area-of-effect spell, but chain lightning allows you to singe your enemies while not harming anyone else.
Available to Sorcerers, Wizards
Sunbeam
Sunbeam may appear unimpressive at first, but Sorcerers have a unique opportunity to profit from its ongoing effects. After the initial casting, you can use your actions on subsequent turns to fire off additional beams as long as you maintain concentration. Because casting a new spell does not count, you could use the Metamagic Quicken Spell to cast other spells as bonus actions while also attempting to blind enemies with this evocation spell.
Available to Druids, Sorcerers, Wizards
Level 7
Level 7 spells are available to full casters starting at level 13.
Forcecage
There is no saving throw for this evocation spell. You read that correctly: you can simply cast this and watch the chaos unfold. You encircle one or more creatures, preventing them from leaving unless they magically teleport. Even then, a successful Charisma saving throw is required. It’s also not a concentration spell, so you can pair it with something lethal like delayed blast fireball or sickening radiance.
Available to Bards, Warlocks, Wizards
Prismatic Spray
This evocation spell is amusing because you get to roll different damage effects for each target. One guy could be burned to a crisp while the person next to him dissolves in acid. This can be difficult if you’re up against enemies who are resistant or immune to one or more of your options, as you may roll those.
Available to Sorcerers, Wizards
Level 8
Level 8 spells are available to full casters starting at level 15.
Dark Star
There are a few intriguing aspects to this evocation spell. For one thing, you have a radius of up to 40 feet, which means you can make it whatever size is most convenient for you. There is magical darkness, difficult terrain, a deafening roar, and no one can cast spells with verbal components within your radius. Not to mention that anyone who begins their turn in there faces up to 8d10 force damage.
Available to Wizards (Graviturgy)
Maddening Darkness
If you’ve been enjoying hunger of Hadar, you’ll enjoy this evocation spell. You cast a large area of magical darkness (that you can see through with Devil’s Sight), with the added benefit that light from spells such as dawn cannot illuminate the space. Anyone who begins their turn in the dark must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or suffer significant psychic damage.
Available to Warlocks, Wizards
Level 9
Level 9 spells are available to full casters starting at level 17.
Meteor Swarm
Meteor swarms are a lot of fun. There are no other options like this evocation spell. You’re summoning four meteors, each with a 40-foot damage radius. A single meteor deals 20d6 fire and 20d6 bludgeoning damage to anyone who fails their Dexterity saving throws. Even if they succeed, they will still take an average of 120 points of damage unless they have the Evasion feature.
Available to Sorcerers, Wizards
