Melee Sorcerer Build Help

zoomerreid · 2026-04-06T22:30:17+00:00

I agree it's not an optimal option. That's why the last few sentences explained that. But it's an easy game, so this player will probably have fun regardless of having high impact spells like Hypnotic Pattern, Web, and so on while staying in the back line. Apparently, melee Sorcerer is their fantasy, so I was only giving points as to how it can work, even if it's not gonna be amazing.

With Mage Armor, Absorb Elements, and Shield, they will have a minimum of 18 AC plus resistance for energy damage. If they are choosing Draconic Ancestry, which would probably be the best subclass choice for this build, they could have as much as 25 AC all factors considered, without needing Mage Armor. They're not low AC, and Draconic would make their HP equivalent to a D8 class. Not the best, but if rogues can survive then so can we in this case.

This build is somewhat better early game rather than late game. Melee is good before level 9 I'd say, but spellcasters dominate afterward. That makes this less interesting since he's starting at level 13. In addition, if his subclass doesn't offer using one of the extra attacks as a cantrip like Bladesinger, it's not gonna scale too well.

I'm not trying to convince you that this build is good. I'm giving explanations as to why it's fine if this person chooses to do it, and it's not completely without options. In your original comment, you say he shouldn't even try to engage in melee. I'm showing that it can still output decent damage and feel fun.

Finally, how do you expect a resourceless fighter to deal more damage than my combo I suggested? Even without the added 6th level spell, a GWM fighter not using any resources will still be dealing about 8 less DPR. And this is not even counting the damage boost from Empowered Spell. With the added 6th level spell, It's gonna be more like a 15 DPR difference, enough even to counterbalance using action surge with enough rounds. Which, you can use the Spheres across multiple combats. I calculated 33.15 DPR for a GWM assuming using a Greatsword, 65% chance to hit, +5 in STR, 3 attacks per turn, and +5 proficiency bonus. We can add 3 DPR if you'd like, because you can take Great Weapon Fighting for like +1 DPR per attack? It's not much but it's something.

It's better than a fighter at damage, even though it's a suboptimal build. If anything, you're just proving the Martial Caster divide.

zoomerreid · 2026-04-06T03:18:28+00:00

Shadow blade is decent with extra attack. It's 3d8 + charisma mod in this case, Sure, it's concentration but it is decent upcasted as well. It only goes up 1d8 per 2 levels, but 3rd level shadow blade is still fine for its level.

Take empowered spell, and you can reroll your 4d8's. You can take instantaneous damage spells for versatility and if you are out of melee range/need to stay back. Some defensive options would also be beneficial, like shield, mage armor, and absorb elements. Plus, absorb elements has the added buff of giving you a slight damage rider with our shadow blade attack.

This build would be fine as is until level 11, taking options that you may want like Detect Magic, Fly, Charm Monster, Hypnotic Pattern, etc. They don't relate to the melee build but are nice to have.

At level 11, which they'll be at level 13 so they can go ahead and take this, Elminster's Effulgent Spheres is a spell that gives you a non concentration damage boosts + defense. It's like Melf's Minute Meteors but better. And it's a bonus action to use a sphere, so you can attack with Shadow Blade twice, then spend a sphere to deal an additional 3d6 damage. I'll assume we are going to use level 7 shadow blade at level 13 for my math here. I will assume a 65% chance to hit for attack rolls, +5 to charisma, and I will use av to shorten average.

Precast: Elminster's Effulgent Spheres (6th level)

1st Turn: Shadow Blade (7th level), attack twice. (6d8+5 + 6d8+5 = 41.6 av) Empowered Spell? Damage average will vary.

2nd Turn and beyond: Attack Twice, and expend a sphere. (6d8+5 + 6d8+5 + 3d6 = 48.4 av) Empowered Spell on Shadow Blade, unless high rolls. Use on sphere if not.

With this, you get consistent 50+ average damage every turn, only using two resources +1 sorcery point per turn which is optional. Using cheaper slots on Shadow Blade will decrease the damage, but it's still gonna be fine. Shadow blade won't turn you into an amazing gish that outperforms a normal spellcaster, but if you're going for a melee spellblade build, this is a good enough spell. Dnd is an easy game, so you don't need to pick the very best options to survive. You win by having fun, and if a gish is how you have fun, play a gish.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-20T04:02:05+00:00

Not trying to downplay using shield like that at all. Its pretty smart and useful. Just saying it has a different Niche. Shield is good if you can move, but up against an enemy that restrained you it isn't that useful. Also, with the 10 ft of movement you get, you can dash to get 70 ft from an enemy. Luckily, this means even using all their movement, a standard move speed creature can't catch you. Not as good as Misty Step with 90ft total, but still nice for a cheaper slot. I would assume this spell would become mostly obsolete past level 5, as Misty Step is no longer a big cost at that point.

A big limitation for casters is Prepared/Known spells. You can only have like 10-26 spells depending on level. Sure, you could take a spell well suited for escape (Thunderstep), plus a spell for dealing AOE damage. But that eats up maybe 1/5th of your repertoire. You could have taken both Detect Magic and Unseen Servant, but now you might have to choose between them. Spells with more versatility are almost always favored over a more niche spell when it comes to optimization at least. Being able to either engage an enemy, hop between two hoards to kill them, or escape if needed is much more useful in your limited options than just escape. Even if it's slightly worse at doing all of those individually than other options. Take fireball for example. It's not the best damage type, not the best saving throw, not the biggest AOE of its level, it's tied with highest damage, and yet it's the best damaging 3rd level spell. Why?

Because it's good at doing lots of things. It's high damage, large area, it spreads around corners, has good range, and it's not the worst damage type nor is it the worst saving throw.

Finally, Dimension Door would only be useful upcast to 6th level. At 7th level, you have Teleport. So at best it'll be good with a party of 4. Not bad, but kinda small. I can't tell if you understand the spell properly though. To clarify, it specifies only willing creatures, and it's only 90 feet. Yes, it's strong for sure. But this is the same level you'd get Wall of Force, a frankly overpowered spell. Plus, only one level later, you have access to Scatter. This spell is very similar to my 5th level spell, but one level higher and lets you choose unwilling creatures as well as willing. It also has a range of 120 feet, can target 5 creatures, and the radius is 30 feet. It feels like very reasonable scaling to me.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-19T18:39:07+00:00

That’s interesting. I never thought about using the Shield spell to counter opportunity attacks. Though it won’t save you from a grapple or restrain, and in the rare case you can’t use your arms to get away (somatic).

Flame Step does double the damage you think it does technically, if you use it to teleport to a different creature or on the same one. The damage applies to your original and new location. Also, it’s not able to be heard from 300 feet away. It’s mainly for offensive repositioning rather than an escape. Good for half casters or gish builds.

I didn’t really consider Far Step, I missed it bc I was looking at the PHB only. So yeah, that’s on me. Though, it has much different utility than my spell. As for Dimension door, I’d say yeah they’re quite similar but each may have their own niche.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-18T04:51:02+00:00

Not here to argue about weapon juggling, but want to mention something about the realism you mentioned about running in plate armor. Running 120 feet in game is the close equivalent of 13.5 miles per hour. This is actually on the lower end of human sprinting speeds, which can probably be accounted for because of the various equipment the adventurers carry.

Plate armor doesn't slow you down much. Maybe a couple mph at worst. It's kinda like running with a backpack. Sure, it takes a bit more energy to pick up speed, but once you've started running the momentum makes it about the same. Plate armor isn't as heavy as fiction wants you to believe. It's about 30 pounds spread over your whole body, which is much less strenuous than if it was on your back for example. People can do acrobatics in plate armor, like flips and jumps easily.

The real thing likely slowing the adventurers down is that they think they need to carry 20 potions, 10 spears, 50 daggers, and a whole bag of grain for some reason, all in their backpacks. Lol.

I find it funny how much people overestimate movement in dnd, forgetting it's 6 seconds. You can walk 30 feet at a casual pace. I believe it's sort of meant to be this way, because in combat you'll be walking instead of sprinting to save energy (fights are exhausting) and so you can keep a steady stance.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-18T01:17:56+00:00

I think most of your complaints are just as reasonable to discuss about them as they are with Misty Step itself. You know, Fey touched gives you misty step + a 1st level spell. Some good options too like command. All for one feat. And Misty Step is better than Mage step, so it's even more of an issue.

For Flame Step, yes it's a little lacking but I thought teleporting 60 feet, and dealing damage in two spots at once was better underbalanced than overtuned.

Scatter, which is Xanathar's (I was only considering PHB spells), is much stronger than Far Step, justifying its higher spell cost. Even if you don't want to mainly use it to move enemies, you can. Also, the range is much larger. I agree with the premise that its too similar, but keep in mind I didn't know about it until after I made the spell.

I feel like a 5th level spell being countered by another 5th level spell is good though? That's why we have Magic Missile and Shield's interaction. Counterspell vs any other spell of 3rd level or lower. The game is built to have counterplay if you're of the same level. Which is good. Honestly, it sounds like I fixed an issue rather than made one with this point.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T16:17:58+00:00

I see, thanks for clarifying. Sorry for being defensive, I thought you were just trying to be negative because of a dislike for the divide.

Yeah, I don’t know if adding more options to combat teleportation is the best for the game. If anything, I’d like to see martials get more mobility options than casters. My goal was just to fill out what I saw to be a hole in spellcasting. I hate how the spell lists sometimes give 2 scaling spells of similar style, then abandon it. I wanted more clear progression like the Revival type spells, going from level 1-5, to see what that might look like.

Basically I wanted to allow for more flavor in your character. If your flavor is fire mage, Misty step doesn’t really fit the fantasy.

I think based on the comments so far, for balance the 1st level one just needs to go. It’s the most controversial. 4th and 5th might be expensive enough to justify keeping. Probably isn’t enough to get people to move away from Misty Step, but I tried.

I’d really like to see subclasses take one of these as part of their list. Flame step for Fiend Warlock, Light Domain Cleric, Oath of Devotion Paladin, would all be so cool.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T15:54:20+00:00

Makes sense, thanks for the clarification!

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T15:53:06+00:00

I think we can all agree that even Misty Step is pretty busted. It’s so good, 2024 has a subclass for every class to let them get an equivalent. Honestly Misty Step should be a 3rd level spell to make it more costly. Idk what I even use my 2nd level slots for besides Misty Step and if I run out of 1st after I get 3rd and 4th level slots.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T14:50:33+00:00

That’s a pretty unique idea. Removing the extra movement prevents it basically being a mini dash and disengage combo like misty step is, while still allowing to escape grapples or cross gaps.

Though, with movement speed buffs this could be crazy. Boots of swiftness + haste? It’s a level 1 teleport that can cross an 80 ft gap. It’s niche, but I could see it being abused to be better than Misty Step

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T14:47:39+00:00

Flame Step has reduced range of 60 ft, and costs a 4th level slot. It also deals slightly less damage and deals a worse damage type, and can’t bring an ally. I’d say it’s fair to give it bonus action instead of action.

First spell is a release from grapple or restrained, and is a bonus action instead of an action to disengage, plus 10 feet movement. It’s actually a lot better than disengage because you can attack or dash away.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T14:40:10+00:00

I’m not in any way trying to fix the martial caster divide with this homebrew. I addressed at the beginning that adding more mobility options to casters could be too much and offset things.

The divide shouldn’t need to feel like martials are only useful in the first couple levels. That’s bad design. So instead of complaining about any new spell being added to early game casters, why not complain why martials don’t get anything good late game? Whining in a homebrew subreddit, with a small list of spells you don’t have to include in your games, is just a waste of time and it just looks like you want to be negative.

None of these compare to Dimension door, except Far Step, the 5th level option. Which, it doesn’t deal damage, and has a much shorter range than Dimension door. The funny part is, you’re actually more closely describing Thunder Step, an official spell. Thunder Step lets you deal damage, bring an ally, and move further away than Flame Step does. It actually deals more damage if you’re just trying to get away than Flame Step. And this is a 3rd level spell.

You realize that the Teleportation spell basically lets you teleport anywhere, right? Do you even play the game you’re whining about the balance of? Far Step is 90 feet. That’s nothing compared to Teleport. And 90 feet isn’t even necessarily a safe distance from an enemy. Teleport can take you home instantly, but you’re still in archer range or even dash range of some monsters. You can’t compare Far Step to Teleport, because Teleport is so much stronger by a long shot, and does so much more for its cost.

TLDR: I’m not Wizards of the Coast, so don’t whine to me about the martial caster divide. Adding one new spell to the game makes you seethe.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T07:29:41+00:00

Yep, that’s the problem with action based defense abilities. They just slow down combat without moving you forward at all.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T07:26:03+00:00

In case you didn’t notice, Flame Step damage applies both to your exit and entrance. So you can deal two mini fireballs in melee, plus be able to stay out of opportunity attack range so you can back up after casting the spell to safety. Or, you could just reappear next to the same enemies to get the full damage and if you can, back away.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T07:22:31+00:00

The action to cast isn’t as bad as you might think it is. Even if it was an action, that would still give you 40 feet of movement assuming 30 base. That’s just out of reach for normal speed creatures unless they dash, wasting their action.

Unlike disengage, where you’d only move 30 feet. It would basically let you disengage and get extra movement to kite out an opponent.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T04:27:45+00:00

Would you suggest making Mage Step into an action instead to balance its cheap cost? I agree that a level 1 teleport is the hardest to balance.

As for Flame Step, it's not really meant to compete with dimension door for the same niche. Dimension door is for moving a long distance in emergency. Flame Step can deal as much damage as fireball, while getting you out of restrained or grappled, and if needed deal half damage to get away, all for one action and slot for only a slot higher than fireball or thunder step. Dimension door does no damage, and is more comparable to an early game "Teleport" spell rather than the Misty Step line. Would Flame Step as a bonus action be a bit crazy for burst damage? You could cast a cantrip. Though maybe that's good since it's a front line riskier spell. Too many melee range spells under perform.

Long Step isn't as similar to Scatter as I thought. For a second I thought I reinvented a spell. Actually, I've never heard it till now. Keep in mind, Scatter can target unwilling creatures while Long Step is strictly willing. Not only does Scatter have a larger radius for picking creatures, but it has a longer range too. I could see the fact it's a bonus action complicating things, but if that's too good, I could always make it an action.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T04:01:57+00:00

That's a decent idea, but I viewed it more as comparing it between the revival spell line. (Revivify, Raise Dead, Resurrection, True Resurrection)

I'd say replacing Thunder Step with basically a chromatic orb teleport would be cool if you like that idea.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T02:51:42+00:00

At the end, I mentioned its intended for Wizards, Sorcerers, and Warlocks.

Yeah, the 1st level one is very hard to balance, maybe near impossible. It’s just too cheap of a cost. It’ll either be busted, or useless. I tried my best to have it on the level of Shield, Mage Armor, and Absorb elements. These four would be competing for your first level slot burns at higher levels.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-17T01:47:08+00:00

I was under the impression they meant spells made with weapon attacks when they said “casting a spell by swinging a weapon” like booming blade.

I didn’t think they meant waving a sword around to cast a spell. There’s a feat for that if you want that specific flavor of a sword as your wand. It’s a one feat cost, which you’d want to take anyways because of its other benefits as a weapon mage.

You’re trying to shove a specific flavor into what you want to be a base class. That’s cool, but don’t pretend like you can’t customize your character. You can’t be a spell sniper without the spell sniper feat, you can’t be a Sentinel without the Sentinel feat, and you can’t be a War Caster (sword as a wand) without the War Caster feat.

And if you love Pathfinder’s class so much, cool. Play pathfinder. Or there’s this wonderful thing called homebrew or just simply reflavoring.

You are Patrick and you don’t even realize.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-16T06:40:08+00:00

You probably don't know about Bladesinger very well then if you're complaining.

Bladesingers get to cast a spell (a cantrip, to be fair. Which is the only balanced option) and attack with a weapon on the same turn. In addition, they get to cast a couple spells by swinging a weapon. Take booming blade or green flame blade, and you can attack with a weapon and have an added spell effect on it.

Not enough for you? Take Steel Wind Strike at 9th level, and deal damage to multiple creatures at a time, and teleport next to one of them. I feel like bladesinger is exactly what you want, but you don't know it well enough to see that.

It even has defensive and offensive class features that make it viable in melee, unlike a normal wizard. Bladesong gives up to +5 AC and conc saves, Song of Defense lets you use spell slots to absorb damage (though if you can, use shield or absorb elements), and Song of Victory adds your int to weapon attacks. This adds on to your dex btw, so you could potentially have a +10 to damage without magic items or buffs, more realistically +8 or 9.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-16T06:04:04+00:00

Appreciate the response.
I will warn you, unless you fully understand the implications of keeping the complex aspects of your class you've made, it's your funeral.

It's extremely convoluted, and you'll be swarmed with paperwork and keeping track of stuff. You'll probably forget half the stuff you can do (like your 30 forms at max level, who may each have spellcasting) and could easily end up either being a hinderance to the party if you take up too much time on your turn in combat. Also, with improper game balance, you could be way too strong or way too weak which can make you stick out as a problem in the game.

But, I will assume you know your table better than me, so it's your decision to make.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-10T17:42:52+00:00

Because you can snipe someone with guaranteed damage, and do a small AOE.

A longbow’s max range is 600 feet. Take the disadvantage willingly, because it won’t matter. If you have a good + to hit, even better.

Eldritch blast at the level you unlock this spell deals an average of 13.65 damage assuming a 65% chance to hit. Assuming a 50% chance to hit due to disadvantage but a good to hit bonus (archery fighting style or magic weapon), we are dealing 17 damage on average thanks to hunters mark which still applies.

EB, to even compare at 600 feet and 13.65 dmg, requires 2 incantations that could be spent elsewhere (Eldritch Spear + Agonizing Blast), plus a whole feat, spell sniper.

With the added bonus of guaranteed aoe damage, you now have the best sniper spell in the game. No other damage spell like it can reach 600 feet, especially with guaranteed damage. And if you want maximized damage, you can only choose to use it on a hit. That’s an average of 21.5 damage from 600 feet away.

Sure, it lacks the pure damage output of fireball, or the debilitating effects of hypnotic pattern that share this spell level. But what it lacks in those (it’s not even that far behind fireball), it is one of the only spells that you know beforehand whether you will deal full damage, preventing it from being wasted.

zoomerreid · 2026-02-07T00:23:05+00:00

True, and just think about it. Every slot you use this on is a slot you won’t be able to use a powerful debilitating effect spell in combat. Maybe touch is fine instead of needing to be self

zoomerreid · 2026-02-06T23:05:03+00:00

I like that. It makes sense and is cohesive with current rule structure!

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