With the right spell selection, you can lean a little bit evil. So much so that you can horn in on some Darklord action.
In Ravenloft, the terrible figures known as the Darklords are the rulers and prisoners of their own dread domains. Each one keeps their realm ruled with an iron fist. Some use magic, some use monstrous forms, but all of their powers have a sort of spooky, eerie, evil vibe to it.
But with the right selection of spells, you too can wield the powers of a Darklord. And not even always at a “lesser scale” either. Here are five spells that will let you emulate the Darklords of Ravenloft.
Animate Dead
Perhaps the single most common spell across the various Darklords is the Animate Dead spell. This just makes sense. After all, you hear Darklord, you think, “yeah, that person is gonna raise an army of skeletons.” Animate Dead is one spell that will let you do exactly that. If you do it before the Darklord you’re trying to fight can, then you may even rob them of a valuable ally.
Blight
There are a few different Darklords with a “toxin” or “corruption” theme. As you might imagine, the spell Blight is a great way to represent that. Some can cast it, but even if they can’t, delivering a massive pile of necrotic damage to anyone living with a single touch feels very Darklord-coded.
Command
Take a page from Strahd and use the Command spell. It’s a 1st-level spell, sure, but Strahd in Ravenloft makes excellent use of it. He has the spell available as an upcast (level 2) Legendary Action, and can do so at will. But using a 1st (or higher) level spell slot to tell someone to grovel before you feels extremely Darklordy.
Polymorph
One thing that many Darklords are capable of is changing their shapes. Disguising who you are is fair game when you are capable of magic like Polymorph. Even moreso since you can give yourself the bestial abilities of whatever you transform into.
Animate Objects
Finally, a surprising number of Darklords have access to the Animate Objects spell. And it’s still a great choice every time you can use it. It just adds more minions to any fight. Whether you use it to emulate the artificer turned villain abilities of someone like Viktra Mordenheim, or to play at the poltergeistly powers of Ravenloft’s spookier denizens, Animate Objects is a great force multiplier for any spellcaster that has access to it.
What spells do you go for when you want to have more edgier, evil vibes?
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Source: Bell of Lost Souls
