The spells are one of the best things about playing a caster in Dungeons and Dragons Fifth Edition. Increasingly unique and creative spells have been added to the already immense list available to players through new sourcebooks in 5e. Some spells are locked into a specific class and only casters from that class can use them unless these spells are granted through a special ability like a feat.
Druids are one of the best spellcasting classes in D&D. The class' power mainly comes from its command of primal divine magic. It's an excellent class for those who want to heal and buff allies, or turn nature itself against their enemies. Druid spells rival the wizard's in terms of usefulness, with some genuine standouts.
Updated 1st of December by Isaac Williams: Druids are one of the classes most reliant on their spellcasting in D&D 5e. Even with their useful abilities, a druid needs to get good value out of their spells. As such, this list has been updated with even more of a druid's best spells over a range of levels.
15 Druidcraft May Not Be Powerful, But It Is Useful
Transmutation Cantrip
Druidcraft is a cantrip, on the lowest end of spell power. However, Druidcraft provides players with many possibilities for roleplaying and problem-solving. Players can use Druidcraft to make plants grow or bloom, predict the weather, and instantly light or snuff small fires. Cantrips can be cast an unlimited number of times a day. This kind of utility can make a difference for players.
These abilities are useful in mundane situations, such as camping during travel. Druidcraft can also be used to develop characters. Whether it's a party member giving a flower to their beloved or an anxious druid who's obsessed with checking the local weather forecast, this spell provides the building blocks for many character-defining moments.
14 Summon Fey Creates A Powerful Ally
3rd-Level Conjuration
Summon Fey can tip an entire fight in the party's favor. Numbers are important in D&D combat. The side with more fighters has an advantage in dealing damage, aiding teammates, breaking enemies' Concentration, and many more. As a result, summoning spells are very powerful in D&D.
Summon Draconic Spirit conjures a fey spirit to aid the party. It's not as powerful as the fey the party are likely to face as enemies, but it's still a very useful ally. It can teleport to reach far-off enemies and it gets multiple attacks at higher levels. In addition, each different fey has a different ability. All of them add utility in combat or raw damage. The spell is always useful in a fight, and very flexible.
13 Moonbeam Is An Exciting Low-Level Attack Option
2nd-Level Evocation
Moonbeam is one of the most entertaining combat spells available to low-level druids. It creates a beam of silvery light 40 feet high and five feet in diameter. Any creature that enters the beam of light is surrounded by painful flames and required to make a Constitution saving throw.
Moonbeam is a very damaging spell at low levels. In particular, it's effective against slow enemies, or ones the party can keep in one place. It's also uniquely effective against shapechangers. If the party encounter werewolves or similar creatures, a druid can lay on the pain with Moonbeam.
12 Healing Word Has Low Cost And Great Benefits
1st-Level Evocation
Of all the healing spells in D&D 5e, few match the utility of Healing Word. It's one of the most basic spells in all of D&D, but it remains useful well into the late game. Unlike many other healing spells, Healing Word can heal at range. In addition, it only takes a bonus action to cast.
As such, Healing Word is an easy spell to cast during the chaos of combat. A druid can use it to revive an unconscious ally someway across the battlefield and still use their action to attack an enemy. The druid gets access to some of 5e's best healing magic. However, it's always worth keeping Healing Word for its cheap cost and quick casting time.
11 Maelstrom Provides An Elemental Obstacle
5th-Level Evocation
Maelstrom is another lower-level druid spell that offers dynamic combat prospects. This spell creates a freestanding whirlpool, either on the ground or on an existing body of water. Attempting to pass through the disrupted area puts creatures in danger of being swept into the center and battered by the swirling waves.
As an obstacle, Maelstrom makes it difficult for most opponents to use the full available space to their advantage. This creates a center of focus on the battlefield that could distract enemies and thus open them up to other players' attacks.
10 Plane Shift Combines Utility And Combat Potential
7th-Level Conjuration
Druids have plenty of utility with their spellcasting. Although they're very useful in combat, a lot of their magic is geared towards traversal and dealing with nature. Plane Shift is primarily one of the spell's best utility spells, but it also has plenty of use in combat.
At higher levels, D&D parties have plenty of reason to travel the planes of existence. The Feywild, Shadowfell, Elemental Planes, Outer Planes, and more are all bursting with adventure. If a druid has Plane Shift and the right tuning forks, they can reach these places with their party at the cost of a single spell slot. In a fight, they can use Plane Shift to send an enemy to another plane — effectively a one-hit kill on many creatures.
9 Antilife Shell Forces Hostiles Away
5th-Level Abjuration
When a druid casts Antilife Shell, they create a barrier that pushes any living creatures 10 feet away from them in all directions. While opponents can still attack the druid via magic or weapons that can overcome the distance, the druid is otherwise unreachable.
Antilife Shell provides an excellent option for keeping melee opponents at bay. For instance, if the druid in question needs some time to heal themselves without enduring further damage, this spell can provide that respite. Additionally, the spell could be used to clear a space to prevent friendly fire or collateral damage.
8 Wall Of Thorns Creates A Punishing Barrier
6th-Level Conjuration
Wall of Thorns is a druid spell that creates a barrier that is true to its name. This wall can be used for both defense and offense due to its tremendous size: either 60 feet long, 10 feet high, and five feet thick. It can also be placed in a 20-foot diameter circle up to 5 feet thick.
Since the wall causes damage to any creatures in its space when it is summoned, Wall of Thorns can easily be used to attack a large number of foes at a time. The wall itself also blocks line of sight, enhancing its defensive capabilities. Wall of Thorns has many uses. It can divide and conquer a group of enemies, cover a party's retreat, and many more.
7 Foresight Gives Advantage On Everything
9th-Level Divination
Ninth-level spells in D&D are as powerful as players might expect. They represent the pinnacle of mortal magic. Many of them can do effects well beyond the scope of lower spell levels. Foresight is one of the best buffs in D&D. It has a very simple effect: it gives the target advantage on almost every roll they make.
With Foresight, a character has advantage on every ability check, attack roll, and saving throw they make. Other creatures also have disadvantage on attack rolls against them. Foresight is one of a druid's best spells in 5e because it simply makes a character better at everything. Even better, it lasts eight hours — an entire adventuring day.
6 Bones Of The Earth Completely Remakes The Battlefield
6th-Level Transmutation
Bones of the Earth allows druids to summon up to six large pillars of stone. When destroyed, the pillars create a 10-foot radius of difficult terrain. These pillars can be arranged in any position the druid wants. With a single spell, a druid can reshape an entire battlefield in their favor.
A druid might use Bones of the Earth to trap enemies in close with a barbarian or fighter. They might give fragile party members cover from enemies, or separate them from major threats. In enclosed spaces, the pillars can even crush enemies against the ceiling. Bones of the Earth is a very versatile spell and one of the best sixth-level spells for druids in 5e.
5 Tsunami Is A Weapon Of Mass Destruction
8th-Level Conjuration
The spell Tsunami creates a truly massive wall of water — up to 300 feet long and high. The wave moves 50 feet per round and will sweep up and carry away everything in its path. The wall created by Tsunami continues to move for up to six rounds. Every turn, it carries enemies with it while dealing bludgeoning damage.
Tsunami's huge area of effect is a major boon. A druid can use it to crush an entire army if they so wish. However, a druid also has control over how wide an area the spell affects. If they want to make it precise to avoid hitting allies and carrying them away, they can.
4 Feeblemind Mentally Destroys A Creature
8th-Level Enchantment
Druids have a reasonable number of spells that debuff a target. Few debuffs in all of D&D 5e, however, are as vicious as Feeblemind. A creature hit by Feeblemind has to make an Intelligence saving throw. If they fail, their intellect is destroyed.
Feeblemind reduces a creature's Intelligence and Charisma scores to 1. In addition, they lose the ability to speak, cast spells, or use magic items. The spell lasts a minimum of 30 days unless dispelled. No other spell in D&D can shut down an enemy as effectively as Feeblemind. It's particularly effective against villains whose main power is in their spellcasting.
3 Transport Via Plants Is Tried And True
6th-Level Conjuration
While it can't compare to spells like Tsunami or Bones of the Earth in terms of sheer magnitude, Transport Via Plants is one of the single most useful spells in a druid's arsenal. Travel is often a major concern in D&D campaigns. By later levels, characters might have to travel entire continents to reach places on time.
Transport Via Plants is one of the most versatile transportation spells in the game. As long as the druid knows of a plant at their destination, in the same realm of existence, they can reach it from any other plant. They can also bring many other creatures with them. Transport Via Plants is one of a druid's best spells in 5e, and one of the best travel spells overall.
2 Druid Grove Is Both Impressive And Utilitarian
6th-Level Abjuration
Dungeons & Dragons parties don't always get to rest in inns or castles. Sometimes they have to stop for the night on the road, or even inside a dungeon. Druid's Grove is one of many spells designed to give parties a place to rest for the night.
Druid's Grove fills an area of natural ground with many effects to make it a safe place to rest. For enemies, the place becomes full of obscuring fog, grasping plants, and hostile tree warriors. However, a druid can tailor these effects to ignore their allies. Druid's Grove is a ready-made fortress that many enemies might overlook.
1 Storm Of Vengeance Makes Druids A Literal Force Of Nature
9th-Level Conjuration
It is only natural that Storm of Vengeance is one of the best druid spells. It's the only ninth-level spell exclusive to their class. With Storm of Vengeance, a druid completely changes the local environment, creating a storm to rain punishment down upon their adversaries.
The clouds the spell creates produce new effects each round. Acidic rain, bolts of lightning, and hailstones are just some of the horrors Storm of Vengeance has to offer. Storm of Vengeance is of some use in combat. However, its real use is in raining destruction on a fixed area. An enemy camp, castle, or even city can quickly fall to a Storm of Vengeance.