[RPG] Is the Fear spell out of line compared to other spells of the same level

balancednd-5e

My groups has been playing low (1-5) level games of 5e for some time but has recently begun playing at the mid (5-10) levels. In our last game a wizard used the Fear spell and it stood out as extremely effective. The monster got one save and then spent the rest of the encounter wasting its actions fleeing. Since the frightened status prevented the monster from moving closer the wizard was able to very easily trap it in a corner. After that it was just a matter of beating it down with 10 rounds of it having no actions.

My understanding was that 5e had moved away from this type of, "save or suck", spell in favor of spells that allow repeated saves. Is this true at the mid levels of play? Is the Fear an unusually potent, "save or suck", spell at this level?

Best Answer

This sounds like a DM problem more than a rules problem

It sounds like you were fighting a singular enemy in a square room with no line-of-sight-breaking cover and only one exit. In this case, Fear is an extremely potent spell for the reasons you gave. However, your situation seems like an outlier, because usually the above conditions are not all present at the same time.

In 5E, especially with casters, having a single enemy is a sure-fire recipe for DM heartache. There are simply too many encounter-ending save spells available. Hold person, Fear, Hypnotic Pattern, and others can very easily lock down a single enemy with almost no hope of them breaking out.

In a 'normal' encounter, there would be cover (so the enemy could get behind it and make a save), there would be multiple enemies (one errant hit on the Wizard who probably doesn't have much of a CON modifier and the concentration breaks down), and there would be multiple exits so the frightened creature could run out and raise the alarm. Your encounter seems almost perfectly tailored to the strengths of Fear, so it seems Fear is overpowered.

I liken this to someone saying:

We were fighting an ice monster who was standing in a pit of oil, and a PC cast Firebolt and did 1d10 + 4d6 burning damage + melted the enemy. Is this too powerful for a cantrip?

In normal circumstances, Fear will not have the dramatic effects that you experienced.

To specifically answer your question of 'Is Fear in line with other spells of the same level', there is nothing in the book that allows you to calculate the relative or absolute power of a spell, so the answer will come down to opinions. However, given the restrictions placed on the spell, and the fact that the creature maintains its other defenses and its ability to call for aid, the spell certainly isn't drastically more powerful than other spells of its level. It is certainly possible to craft situations in which Fear would be exceptionally powerful, but this is possible of nearly any spell regardless of level. In a general, level-appropriate encounter with a general, level-appropriate number of enemies in a generalized setting, Fear will not be an encounter-ender most of the time.