Magic Initiate Feat 5e: Rules and Best Spell Picks
Magic Initiate teaches you two cantrips and one level 1 spell from the cleric, druid or wizard list. You can cast the level 1 spell once per long rest without a slot, or with any spell slots you have. In 2024 it is an Origin feat you can take more than once, picking a different list each time.
What does Magic Initiate do in 2024?
Magic Initiate is the cheapest way to put real spells on a character who has none, or to borrow a key spell from another class's list. When you take it, you pick one spell list: cleric, druid or wizard. From that list you get:
- Two cantrips: cast them as often as you like.
- One level 1 spell: always prepared. Cast it once for free, regaining that free cast on a long rest, or cast it with any spell slots you already have.
- Your choice of casting ability: Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma, picked when you take the feat. Use your highest one.
- Spell swaps: each time you gain a level, you can replace one of these spells with another of the same level from the same list.
It is an Origin feat. The Acolyte (cleric), Guide (druid) and Sage (wizard) backgrounds grant it, and you can take it more than once with a different list each time.
How is the 2024 version different from 2014?
| Rule | 2014 Magic Initiate | 2024 Magic Initiate |
|---|---|---|
| Spell lists | Bard, cleric, druid, sorcerer, warlock or wizard | Cleric, druid or wizard |
| Casting ability | Fixed by the class (e.g. Intelligence for wizard) | Your choice of Int, Wis or Cha |
| Level 1 spell | Once per long rest at its lowest level | Once per long rest free, plus any of your spell slots |
| Change spells | No | Swap one spell each level |
| Repeatable | No | Yes, different list each time |
| How you get it | Costs an Ability Score Improvement (or variant human) | Free from Acolyte, Guide or Sage; human Versatile |
The flexible casting ability is the big change. A Charisma paladin can take the wizard list and cast Shield and Fire Bolt off Charisma, which was impossible in 2014. The other big gain is slot casting: a sorcerer who picks up a cleric spell can keep casting it with sorcery slots after the free use is gone.
What are the best Magic Initiate spells?
Pick the list first, based on what your party is missing, then the spells.
Wizard list
- Shield (level 1): a reaction for +5 AC until your next turn, including against the attack that triggered it. On a fighter with AC 18, a free Shield can turn the boss's biggest hit of the day into a miss. Casters with slots can cast it again and again.
- Find Familiar (level 1): one casting gets you a permanent scout and the Help action in combat. Great value from a single free cast.
- Fire Bolt (cantrip): 1d10 fire at 120 feet, scaling to 4d10 at level 17. A reliable ranged attack for a Strength character.
- Mage Hand, Minor Illusion, Prestidigitation (cantrips): utility that solves problems outside combat.
Cleric list
- Healing Word (level 1): a bonus action heal at 60 feet that picks up a downed ally. Every party wants a second source.
- Bless (level 1): +1d4 to attacks and saves for three allies. Needs concentration.
- Guidance (cantrip): +1d4 to ability checks with one skill. One of the best utility cantrips in the game.
- Sacred Flame (cantrip): a Dexterity-save damage cantrip that ignores cover.
Druid list
- Goodberry (level 1): ten berries that each restore 1 HP and feed a person for a day. The 1 HP is perfect for bringing back an ally at 0 HP.
- Healing Word or Entangle (level 1): healing or area control.
- Guidance and Starry Wisp (cantrips): the same Guidance as the cleric list, plus a 1d8 radiant attack that reveals invisible creatures.
- Shillelagh (cantrip): lets a Wisdom-based character fight with a club or quarterstaff using their casting ability.
Who should take Magic Initiate?
- Fighters, barbarians and rogues: two cantrips give you options outside combat. Guidance alone makes a rogue's skill checks better.
- Paladins and rangers: Shield on a heavily armored half-caster is brutal, and you can fuel it with your own slots in 2024.
- Sorcerers, bards and warlocks: borrow Healing Word, Guidance or Shield without spending one of your class's limited spells known.
- Wizards: the cleric list adds healing and Guidance, which the wizard list lacks entirely.
If your spellcasting ability is low (an 8 or 10 in all three mental scores), stick to spells that don't use it: Shield, Guidance, Goodberry and Find Familiar work fine at any score. Attack cantrips and save-based spells want at least a +2 modifier.
Is Magic Initiate worth it?
In 2024 it is one of the strongest Origin feats, and the only one that grows with your options instead of your numbers. Compared with Lucky or Alert, it gives you new things to do every session instead of better odds on old ones. For a martial character who wants one defensive trick, wizard-list Shield is hard to beat; for a support character, cleric-list Healing Word plus Guidance fills two party roles at once. For more on how cantrips scale, see cantrips in 5e, and roll the damage on the d10 roller.
One common mistake: in 2024 you can't use Magic Initiate to grab bard, sorcerer or warlock spells such as Eldritch Blast. Those lists were in the 2014 feat but not the 2024 one.
FAQ
What does Magic Initiate give you in 2024?
Two cantrips and one level 1 spell from the cleric, druid or wizard spell list. You choose Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma as the spellcasting ability, cast the level 1 spell once per long rest for free, and can also cast it with your own spell slots.
Can you take Magic Initiate more than once?
In the 2024 rules, yes, but you must choose a different spell list each time. The 2014 version was not repeatable.
What spell lists can Magic Initiate use?
In 2024: cleric, druid or wizard. In 2014 you could also choose bard, sorcerer or warlock, and the spellcasting ability was fixed by the class you picked.
What is the best Magic Initiate spell?
For most characters it is Shield from the wizard list, a reaction that adds +5 to AC. Healing Word (cleric or druid) and Find Familiar (wizard) are the other top picks.
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Contains content from the System Reference Document 5.1 and 5.2 by Wizards of the Coast LLC, used under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.