In 5e D&D, can a wizard discern and copy a wizard spell into their spellbook that they aren't high enough level to cast? If they found a dead archmage's book, or stole their own master's, prior to fleeing into the night, could a 5th-level wizard copy the 9th-level spells into their own? He doesn't have the spell slots to cast it, obviously, but it beats having to hold onto the book for years; a whole career, waiting to get those vaunted spell slots.
All I find is a money requirement, and a time requirement; it doesn't even seem like each spellbook has limited space. I'd like to think no, as these more advanced spells are beyond his ken, at present, but I don't know if there is officially an answer. Would he be able to figure out what those higher spells even are? Could he copy them into his book, with the money, and the time?
It seems like in the Waterdeep: Dragon Heist adventure, you COULD find a certain archmage's tome, steal it, copy it, and eventually still trade it, unharmed, for profit to an interested party; basically getting twice the value out if an already valuable thing. Thanks much!
Best Answer
No, a wizard can only copy spells of levels they can actually prepare.
Unfortunately, as the rules describing the wizard's spellcasting and spellbook state:
You can only copy a spell if you're already of a sufficiently high level to be able to prepare spells of that level in the first place. A junior wizard who finds a master's spellbook will need to hold onto it until they are high enough level to understand all its contents if they want to learn all the spells within.
Be aware that this is a particularly important caveat for a multiclass wizard. A wizard multiclassed into other spellcasting classes might have spell slots of sufficiently high level for a found spell, but lack the ability to prepare wizard spells of the required level (as explored in this question).