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PrestidigitationCantrip Transmutation

Six tiny effects, no damage, three at a time. The most-used cantrip in the game.

Add it to a characterAll spells
Level
Cantrip
School
Transmutation
Casting Time
1 action
Range
10 feet
Duration
1 hour

The card

Prestidigitation

Cantrip Transmutation

Prestidigitation

Casting
1 action
Range
10 feet
Duration
1 hour

Components: V, S

This spell is a minor magical trick that novice spellcasters use for practice. You create one of the following magical effects within 'range':

You create an instantaneous, harmless sensory effect, such as a shower of sparks, a puff of wind, faint musical notes, or an odd odor.

You instantaneously light or snuff out a candle, a torch, or a small campfire.

You instantaneously clean or soil an object no larger than 1 cubic foot.

You chill, warm, or flavor up to 1 cubic foot of nonliving material for 1 hour.

You make a color, a small mark, or a symbol appear on an object or a surface for 1 hour.

You create a nonmagical trinket or an illusory image that can fit in your hand and that lasts until the end of your next turn.

If you cast this spell multiple times, you can have up to three of its non-instantaneous effects active at a time, and you can dismiss such an effect as an action.

Bringing it to the table

Usage

Available toBardSorcererWarlockWizard

Best Used For

1Up to three of its non-instantaneous effects can be running at once. That is the clause people miss, and it is where the clever plays live.
2Clean or soil a cubic foot. Chill, warm or flavour it. Light or snuff a flame. Leave a mark. Conjure a trinket. None of it does damage; all of it solves scenes.
3It is a roleplay engine, not a combat spell. At a table that rewards creativity it pays out more than any attack cantrip you could have taken instead.
4Read the durations before you build a plan on it: the sensory effects are instantaneous, flavour and marks last an hour, and the trinket is gone at the end of your next turn.

Take it to the table

Add Prestidigitation to a Character

Pick one of the classes that gets it — level and the rest fill themselves in.

The Forge

Forge a character with Prestidigitation

Choose a class that gets this spell. The forge builds the character around it.

Forge a Bard with Prestidigitation

Bard · level 1 · pre-filled

Counsel

Prestidigitation, Answered

Can Prestidigitation do damage?

No. Every effect is explicitly harmless — sparks, a puff of wind, an odd odour. It cannot deal damage.

How many Prestidigitation effects can you have at once?

Up to three non-instantaneous effects at a time, and you can dismiss one as an action.

How long does Prestidigitation last?

It depends on the effect. Sensory effects and lighting a candle are instantaneous; flavouring material and marking a surface last 1 hour; a trinket or illusory image lasts until the end of your next turn.

Is Prestidigitation worth taking?

At most tables, yes — it is the most-used utility cantrip in 5e. It wins nothing in a fight and solves an enormous number of problems outside one.

Put It In A Spellbook

Pick a class, and forge the character that casts it. Your first is free.

Forge the character
Bard 5eSorcerer 5eWarlock 5eWizard 5eCharacter Creator