Investiture of Ice: Cold Comfort

Usable By: Druid, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard

Spell Level: 6

School: Transmutation

Casting Time: 1 action

Range: Self

Duration: Concentraion, up to 10 minutes

Components: V, S

Until the spell ends, ice rimes your body, and you gain the following benefits:

You are immune to cold damage and have resistance to fire damage.

You can move across difficult terrain created by ice or snow without spending extra movement.

The ground in a 10-foot radius around you is icy and is difficult terrain for creatures other than you. The radius moves with you.

You can use your action to create a 15-foot cone of freezing wind extending from your outstretched hand in a direction you choose. Each creature in the cone must make a Constitution saving throw. A creature takes 4d6 cold damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. A creature that fails its save against this effect has its speed halved until the start of your next turn.

Review by Sam West, @CrierKobold

Investiture of Ice lands as one of the coolest (pun intended) ice based spells in the game. This slick frozen option works to create not just the cold-caster fantasy, but has a genuinely interesting battlefield control suite of tools. This is an effect that doesn’t just sell a fantasy, but gives you easy tools to support an entire playstyle. It's not that powerful of a playstyle, but it's something I know a lot of player’s would have a blast playing.

The base play pattern this offers you is a series of mini Cone of Colds attached to Ray of Frost's slow and difficult terrain surrounding you. This is an option you really want to be built towards, as it asks you to be a frontline caster that wants to keep creatures in place. When paired with a buddie’s actual Cone of Cold (which you’re immune to, conveniently), you can act as a settup piece that keeps everything within ten feet of you from moving anywhere quickly, all while dishing out moderate damage to most of them every turn. Halving a creatures’ speeds AND putting them in difficult terrain makes it so even dashing won’t get you more than a single move away from the caster.

Compared to the just damaging options Investiture of Flame and spells like Witch Bolt offers, Investiture of Ice has far more depth. This is a tool that engages an entire playstyle fantasy in a nice little package. In just one spell, you’ve got difficult terrain that cares about your positioning, an action that slows creatures, a potential defensive damage buffer, and a tool to navigate niche difficult terrain freely. While yes, encounters where the cold immunity and fire resistance will matter often will be against enemies with the same kinds of resistances, often your slow and difficult terrain effects can still work just as well. Investiture of Ice has an applicable effect in all fights where you’d want to use it, and most fights you’ll be pretty happy casting it.

This is a spell for players who want to try something different. It's a 6th level spell that wants you to have Shield and Absorb Elements at the ready, a high constitution, maybe even the War Caster feat. Even without all these options, Investiture of Ice can be a really fun experience with coordinated teams, all while selling the cone of cold spewing winter wizard archetype. I’m a big fan of Investiture of Ice; if you get a chance, I’d try it out.

5e Spells

Investiture of Ice: Cold Comfort