The Halfling had a glint of mischief in his eye when taunting the Orc. “Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?” With a flick of his hand, the Halfling was suddenly towering over the Orc.
Booyah.
Table of Contents
What is Enlarge/Reduce Spell?
The spell’s text from the Basic Rules reads:
“You cause a creature or an object you can see within range to grow larger or smaller for the duration. Choose either a creature or an object that is neither worn nor carried. If the target is unwilling, it can make a Constitution saving throw. On a success, the spell has no effect.
If the target is a creature, everything it is wearing and carrying changes size with it. Any item dropped by an affected creature returns to normal size at once.“
Enlarge/Reduce 5e Stats
| Level | 2 |
| Casting Time | 1 Action |
| Range/Area | 30 ft |
| Classes | Sorcerer, Wizard, Artificer |
| Components | Verbal, Somatic, Material* |
| Duration | 1 Minute |
| School | Transmutation |
| Attack/Save | Constitution |
| Damage/Effect | Buff |
How Does Enlarge/Reduce Work?
Enlarge/Reduce doubles or shrinks by half the size of an item or creature. It also multiplies the weight by 8x or reduces it by 8x. Finally, creatures that have Enlarge/Reduce cast upon them are considered either one size larger or smaller. If the target creature is unwilling, then it must make a Constitution saving throw to avoid the effects of the spell.
Is Enlarge Reduce a Good Spell?
The standard use most players use the Enlarge/Reduce spell is so that a player can grapple something they typically won’t be able to. The extra damage is pretty weak and doesn’t make it worthwhile, so you’ll have to use your imagination if you want to get the most mileage out of it.
The key factor when coming up with a creative use for the Enlarge/Reduce spells is the weight change. Multiplying the weight of an object by 8 times can mean the difference between a trebuchet rock smacking into a wall and one-shotting an entire castle.
You could also shrink a bunch of larger rocks down to pebble size and use a sling to fling mini boulders at people. The extra 1d4 damage that it adds to weapons is pretty minimal, so using it for other effects is probably going to be the best idea.
An idea that a lot of players have (that I personally wouldn’t allow as a DM) is using it on a door. It’s technically not against the rules, but it seems like gaming the system. Technically, if you shrink a door it’ll just fall out of its hinges and the party can walk through any locked door.
Which Classes Can Use Enlarge Reduce
Sorcerers, Wizards, and Artificers are the only classes that have Enlarge/Reduce on their spell lists, but there are other classes like the Bard or Warlock that can add additional spells to their list through feats or special abilities.
Before starting GameCows with his wife Kendra, he used to teach English Language Arts in the US. He combined his love of gaming with education to create fun game-based learning lessons until he eventually decided to run GameCows with Kendra full-time. He’s known for pouring over rulebooks in his spare time, being the rule master during game night, and as the perma DM in his DnD group. Bryan loves board games, writing, traveling, and above all his wife and partner in crime, Kendra.