Sapping Sting: Seat and Beat
Usable By: Wizard
Spell Level: Cantrip
School: Necromancy
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 30 feet
Duration: Instantaneous
Components: V, S
You sap the vitality of one creature you can see in range. The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or take 1d4 necrotic damage and fall prone.
At Higher Levels. This spell's damage increases by 1d4 when you reach 5th level (2d4), 11th level (3d4), and 17th level (4d4).
Review by Sam West, Twitter:@CrierKobold
While I don’t entirely love the name, Sapping Sting is a super neat cantrip. It follows the basic Vicious Mockery format with a bit of damage plus condition equals cantrip, but instead of forcing disadvantage on a creature’s next attack, you’re knocking it prone.
Prone is a surprisingly deep mechanic in terms of 5e, as it isn’t inherently only negative like most. Ranged attacks against a prone creature are made with disadvantage, and melee attacks are made with advantage. That on its own puts Sapping Sting in a unique position. Groups with ample melee combatants can find it an excellent tool the wizard can fall back on again and again to give a massive boon to their party. Groups composed of ranged rangers, rogues, sorcerers, and warlocks might find it's a highly situational spell instead, something you’re casting in the same way you’d cast a Ray of Frost while retreating.
Having your damage cantrips be diverse in utility while also dealing any amount of damage is huge. If a creature drops to single digit hit points, having an option that does can potentially kill it can be invaluable. Turning a single miss into a hit via advantage can be a massive up-swing in damage that dwarfs the relevance of Fire Bolt or Poison Spray. If you’re down to firing off cantrips to kill something, ideally you’re aiming to put down an already injured target. Sapping Sting will commonly be perfectly fine there, and then also be a tool to mess with enemy movement and set up allies.
I’m a big fan of Sapping Sting. Bladesingers can have a neat play pattern where you Sapping Sting as part of your level six extra attack into a melee weapon attack at advantage; that’s pretty sick. Mid tier eldritch knights might consider doing the same until they get their third or fourth attacks. Outside of specific builds, any wizard that wants a flexible, somewhat short range tool that deals damage, assists allies, and hinders enemies should consider picking up Sapping Sting.
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