Level
8th
Casting Time
1 Action
Range/Area
Self
(30 ft )
Components
V, S, M *
Duration
Concentration
1 Minute
School
Abjuration
Attack/Save
CON Save
Damage/Effect
Blinded
Divine light washes out from you and coalesces in a soft radiance in a 30-foot radius around you. Creatures of your choice in that radius when you cast this spell shed dim light in a 5-foot radius and have advantage on all saving throws, and other creatures have disadvantage on attack rolls against them until the spell ends. In addition, when a fiend or an undead hits an affected creature with a melee attack, the aura flashes with brilliant light. The attacker must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be blinded until the spell ends.
* - (a tiny reliquary worth at least 1,000 gp containing a sacred relic, such as a scrap of cloth from a saint's robe or a piece of parchment from a religious text)
Hmm, it's another of those spells that has a weird aura type effect. I *think* the aura / area of effect only matters for the initial casting in determining what creatures of choice are affected, and that's probably how I'd rule for my own games BUT I'm so used to thing's being interpreted in the way that's least favorable to the players in this edition.
You're right. The initial radius is only for determining which creatures the caster can target.
Technically you could choose yourself because its anyone of your choosing within the radius initially including you but I'd rule it to the DM??
"Creatures of your choice in that radius when you cast this spell"
You are a creature, and inside the aura at the time of casting, so you can choose yourself no problem.
Also note the lack of repeating saves against the blind condition on subsequent turns, so as RAW if you're blinded by this spell then you're blinded until the spell ends. This is HUGE if you fight fiends or undead bosses.
I have a question what does it mean with holy-type magic what is holy type magic if used by a dawn dragon
Uuh... what?
I kinda see this spell as the cleric version of Foresight: it gives advantage to all saving throws and disadvantage to attack rolls against affects creatures. It is slightly weaker in that it only lasts for a minute and requires concentration, but given that it can affect an unlimited number of creatures in your range and can blind fiends or undead that do manage to hit the creature, I think it makes up for it.
Especially due to being able to affect an entire party if they’re within range - this might be my favorite defensive spell for that reason.
It's cool that this spell gives you advantage to maintain concentration on it
What's easy to overlook with this spell is that, unless you have the war caster feat, per the spellcasting rules, you'd have to be holding the reliquary in one hand and use your other hand free for the somatic components of the spell. So absent the war caster feat you couldn't be wearing a shield.
Since you can't use your shield in this case as the spellcasting focus (because the material component has a cost).
Not everyone takes war caster (some take resilient instead or don't even play using feats). So I figured I'd point this out.
All clerics that are built reasonably well take res con and war caster.