D&D Wizard 5e Guide
Published on March 5, 2020, Last modified on December 13th, 2024
In this post, we will be examining the wizard’s class features and how you can optimize your wizard through choosing your race, background, ability scores, subclass, feats, and spells.
Wizard 5e Guide Rating Scheme
This guide is meant as a deep dive into the DnD 5e wizard. For a quick overview of other 5e classes, check out our Guide to DnD 5e Classes.
The color code below has been implemented to help you identify, at a glance, how good that option will be for your wizard. This color coding isn’t a hard and fast rule; there are plenty of sub-optimized options out there that will be viable to your party and will be fun to play.
- Red : Isn’t going to contribute to the effectiveness of your character build at all
- Orange : Situationally good, but a below-average option otherwise
- Green : A good option
- Blue : A great option, you should strongly consider this option for your character
- Sky Blue: An amazing option. If you do not take this option your character would not be optimized
D&D 5e Wizard Overview
| Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | Cantrips Known | —Spell Slots per Spell Level— | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | ||||
| 1st | +2 | Spellcasting, Arcane Recovery | 3 | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2nd | +2 | Arcane Tradition | 3 | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 3rd | +2 | – | 3 | 4 | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 4th | +2 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 4 | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 5th | +3 | – | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 6th | +3 | Arcane Tradition feature | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 7th | +3 | – | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – |
| 8th | +3 | Ability Score Improvement | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | – | – | – | – | – |
| 9th | +4 | – | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | – | – | – | – |
| 10th | +4 | Arcane Tradition feature | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | – | – | – | – |
| 11th | +4 | – | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – |
| 12th | +4 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – |
| 13th | +5 | – | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | – | – |
| 14th | +5 | Arcane Tradition feature | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | – | – |
| 15th | +5 | – | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | – |
| 16th | +5 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | – |
| 17th | +6 | – | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 18th | +6 | Spell Mastery | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 19th | +6 | Ability Score Improvement | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 20th | +6 | Signature Spell | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
Playstyle
Wizards are spellcasters that have studied the fundamental forces of magic itself in order to weave it to their will.
Wizards are a class that relies on their INT to cast spells, outsmart opponents, and get themselves out of tricky situations. This reliance on INT will become apparent to players as they realize that they have to use their brain to manage a massive spell list and be the party member everyone relies on to always have a plan (thank Gandalf for setting that unrealistic expectation).
Strengths
The wizard class is the epitome of a full caster. They have an unparalleled spell list that they can prepare spells from every day to ensure they are always ready for whatever situations may arise.
The wizard’s strengths really lie in their versatility. Falling from a building? Got a spell for that. Need to kill a clumped together group of bad guys? Got a spell for that. Need to infiltrate a tightly patrolled encampment? Got a spell for that.
Weaknesses
A wizard’s weaknesses are about what you would expect. They have very low AC and hit points and struggle with anything physical.
Best Races for Wizards
Choosing a race that complements the Wizard’s spellcasting capabilities is important, because while it’s incredibly potent, it’s also all they’ve got. If you’re looking for guidance on selecting the perfect race for your wizard, take a look at our Guide to Wizard Races.
If you need a quick recommendation and are working with the Basic Rules or Player’s Handbook, Gnomes are an excellent choice. With a +2 bonus to Intelligence, Gnomes perfectly align with the Wizard’s focus on boosting their spellcasting. Their Gnome Cunning trait also grants Advantage on saving throws against magic, which offers an excellent defense against enemy spells—if they happen to get passed your Counterspell.
Best Backgrounds for Wizards
Acolyte: Religion and Insight are already available to wizards but you do get two languages, and gaining shelter in certain places of worship can be handy.
Sage: Two INT skills and two languages.
Ability Scores
Ability Score Increases (ASI) at 4th, 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level.
Wizards need INT and nothing else is critically important.
STR: STR is not useful to a wizard unless they are going for a heavy armor build.
DEX: Wizards have a notoriously low AC so a high DEX is the best way to avoid getting hit. Most wizards use mage armor to pump their AC, which stacks with DEX. If you are going for a heavy armor build, DEX can be mostly ignored.
CON: More hit points and better CON saves make the wizard less squishy.
INT: This is the most important stat for the wizard, pump this as high as you can.
WIS: Can help with WIS saves and Perception.
CHA: Leave this to other classes.
Wizard Class Progression
1st Level
Hit Points: Wizards have a measly d6 hit dice. You can somewhat mitigate this by increasing CON since you only need to worry about INT as your main stat.
Saves: People often call INT one of the worst stats because INT saves don’t happen very often.
Proficiencies: No armor proficiencies and the weapon choice is barely worth mentioning. But you weren’t really hoping to swing a greatsword with your wizard, were you?
Skills: Unfortunately the wizard only gets to pick two skills.
- Arcana (INT): You will probably be the party member who is relied on for Arcana checks, and great flavor too.
- History (INT): Can be nice if you enjoy lore and roleplaying, but you will make your DM work extra hard!
- Insight (WIS): Your WIS won’t be high enough to make this worth it.
- Investigation (INT): This will be one of your go-to skills for exploration encounters.
- Medicine (WIS): Neat in a pinch, but low WIS can make this tricky.
- Religion (INT): Same as History but sometimes more useful if your campaign includes gods.
Spellcasting: If you want to cast spells you’ve come to the right place. Wizards are the best at what they do. Wizards have a unique way of discovering and preparing spells via their spellbook. This book allows wizards to copy spells that they have found while adventuring, which allows wizards to know more spells than they get by simply leveling up. The downside of the spellbook is, if it is destroyed or lost, the wizards will be stuck with the spells they currently have prepared until they can find their book or create a replacement. Wizards also get access to ritual casting which is a great way to stretch spell slots if you have time to perform the ritual. Wizards can use an arcane focus as their spellcasting focus.
Arcane Recovery: One of the biggest challenges a wizard faces is knowing when to use important spell slots. Arcane Recovery makes the spell slot system a bit less punishing.
2nd Level
At 2nd level wizards get to choose their Arcane Tradition. These options all have their own merits and playstyle.
- Bladesinger: The Bladesinger subclass provides everything you need to make an effective melee/spellcasting hybrid character. Not only is it loads of fun, it's also quite strong.
- Chronurgy Magic: Chronurgy Magic Wizards can manipulate the flow of time and bend it to their will. The features this subclass gets access to are all useful and unique.
- Graviturgy Magic: Graviturgy Magic Wizards can manipulate gravity and bend it to their will. Not as powerful as Chronurgy, Graviturgy is still quite flavorful with some interesting abilities.
- Order of Scribes: An Order of Scribes wizard excels at learning new spells and is at its best when it has a huge spellbook to pull from. If you want to play this subclass, make sure you have a plan on how you will get access to lots of gp and spells to copy.
- School of Abjuration: The School of Abjuration is a powerful and easy-to-use wizard subclass that focuses on the defensive aspect of spellcasting.
- School of Conjuration: The School of Conjuration is all about summoning creatures and objects.
- School of Divination: Experts in seeing into the future, divination wizards use their abilities to manipulate the battlefield
- School of Enchantment: As the name implies, wizards in the School of Enchantment can enchant people and monsters to obey their commands.
- School of Evocation: School of Evocation wizards like to blast their enemies with big flashy elemental spells. If want a straightforward damage-dealing mage, this is the one for you.
- School of Illusion: The School of Illusion focuses on deception through illusion magic. This subclass requires the most creativity to be effective, as well as a DM that sometimes lets you get away with silly ideas.
- School of Necromancy:
- School of Transmutation: School of Transmutation Wizards can transform materials at will, manipulating matter into whatever they see fit. Unfortunately this school is relatively weak compared to other wizard subclasses and doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from a regular wizard.
- War Magic: War Magic wizards are great at keeping themselves in the fight and holding up powerful concentration spells as long as possible.
3rd Level
18th Level
Spell Mastery: Choose a 1st- and 2nd-level spell to make into a cantrip. This is an extraordinarily powerful ability, especially when combined with reaction based spells like shield or silvery barbs.
20th Level
Signature Spells: This is like an enhanced Spell Mastery, allowing you to prepare two extra 3rd-level spells each day and cast them at 3rd-level for free. It’s best to choose spells that can be upcast for the ability, to stretch its efficiency to the max.
Best Feats for Wizards
Check out our Guide to Wizard Feats.
Best Spells for Wizards
Check out our Guide to Warlock Spells.
Best Multiclass Options for Wizards
Multiclassing is always an opportunity cost, you have to determine if taking a level of another class is worth what you will lose from the original class. Many factors come into this decision, with the main factor being how long your campaign will run and, ultimately, what level you will be playing until. With Sorcerers and other full casters, you want to avoid taking more than 3 multiclass levels, or else you won’t be able to get access to 9th-level spells.
Another thing to take into consideration is the additional class’ primary ability scores. Ideally, you want to use the Wizard’s high INT to synergize with the additional class, but there is only one other class that uses INT to this extent (the Artificer). That said, multiclassing will work with classes that use a different primary ability score and can help smooth over some of the Wizard’s weaknesses.
Be warned though, Wizards are possibly the best single class build on their own. Dipping into another class delays or locks you out of very powerful spells at higher levels.
Artificer: This is the obvious choice since Artificers are also INT-based casters. Artificers open you up to medium armor and shields, giving a significant boost to AC. Take at least two levels of Artificer to get access to Infuse Item, or three if you want to gain an Artificer Specialist, of which Artillerist or Battle Smith would make the most sense. Taking more Artificer levels is not advised as it will delay gaining higher level Wizard spells too much. However, as a full caster, multiclassing into Artificer will not slow down your spell slot progression.
Cleric: A classic option is to take one level of Cleric to get access to medium/heavy armor, shields, and a whole host of new spells including powerful healing options.
Fighter: Taking one Fighter level gets you access to a massive amount of weapons and armor, as well as shields. The Defense Fighting Style can also help stack AC even higher, making you much more durable and making it easier to maintain concentration. A second level of Fighter gives you Action Surge, allowing you to potentially cast two spells in a turn, creating the opportunity for some powerful combos.
Sources Used in This Guide
- : 2014 Player's Handbook
- 2024 PHB: 2024 Player's Handbook
- BR: Basic Rules
- GotG: Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants
- SotDQ: Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen
- ERLW: Eberron: Rising from the Last War
- EEPC: Elemental Evil Player’s Companion
- EGtW: Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount
- FToD: Fizban's Treasury of Dragon
- GGtR: Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica
- MotM: Monsters of the Multiverse
- MToF: Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes
- MOoT: Mythic Odyessys of Theros
- PAitM: Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse
- PHB: Player's Handbook
- SAiS: Spelljammer: Adventures in Space
- SCoC: Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos
- SCAG: Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide
- TCoE: Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
- TTP: The Tortle Package
- WBtW: The Wild Beyond The Witchlight
- : Unearthed Arcana
- VRGtR: Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft
- VGtM: Volo's Guide to Monsters
- XGtE: Xanathar’s Guide to Everything
Other Wizard Guides
- Best Feats for Wizards
- Wizard Subclasses Overview
- Wizard Races
- Wizard Spells
- Bladesinger
- School of Divination
Fill out the form below to receive Escape From Mt. Balefor for free!
