Summary
Sorcerers are the casters ofDungeons & Dragonsthat, unlike bards or wizards, have magic flow through them naturally. This is why they cast with Charisma, and the 2024 Player’s Handbook has kept them with most of their identity intact.
Yet they still went through a lot of changes, with most of the new things they can do expanding on their versatility. They still have a limited pool of spells known, but thanks to the expanded uses of metamagic and added ways to earn spell slots, the class is as healthy as ever in 2024.
7Earlier Sorcerous Versatility
Flexible Cantrips And Metamagic Options
An optional rule for sorcerers was sorcerous versatility, letting them swap a cantrip and/or metamagic option whenever they could gain an ability score increase. While this exact feature isn’t in the 2024 Player’s Handbook, a better version of it is, letting you do the same thing but at every single level up.
This allows for a lot of experimentation, since you are no longer stuck with certain cantrips for too long if you don’t like them. And it makes sense; after all, these options are similar to fighting styles for other classes, and all you’re doing is training in different ways to tackle encounters.
6Sorcerous Restoration
It Is Now A Level Five Feature
Sorcery points are an important resource for sorcerers, not only for their use in metamagic, but also because they can be used to create more spell slots. To stop players from hoarding the slots for a rainy day, the 2024 Player’s Handbook gives players sorcerous restoration at level five.
The old Sorcerous Restoration was a level 20 feature that gave back four sorcery points after a short rest. Level 20 sorcerers can now recover ten sorcery points when taking the same rest.
This feature makes it so, after a short rest, you’re able to recover expended sorcery points up to half your sorcerer’s level. Thisopens up experimentation for sorcererswithout the constant threat of running out of resources by the time the real fights break out.
5Converting Spell Slots Into Points Is A Free Action
You Can Alter Your Strategy On The Fly
Sorcerers were always able to transform sorcery points into spell slots and vice versa, and doing so would take them a bonus action. In the 2024 Player’s Handbook, it still costs a bonus action to create spell slots, but a free action to turn spell slots into points.
This is a huge change, since it allows sorcerers to make decisions in an instant. Now, whenever you misswith a spell attack, for example, you can turn a level one slot into two sorcery points, and then spend one point on the seeking spell option, rerolling the attack; all within the same turn and a single action taken.
4Subclass At Level Three
Might As Well Start Your Adventure Here
While each class in the 2024 Player’s Handbook maintains its identity, they were all also changed in a few ways to improve gameplay clarity. This is why all classes now gain their subclass at level three, something that makes sense from a gameplay perspective, but not that much from a roleplaying one.
You see, the subclass of sorcerers defines their backstory, since in a lot of cases they were born with that magic. That is the reason why they have this innate talent for magic, so if you’re starting a character at level one or two, you should already choose your subclass so you can roleplay it accordingly.
3Innate Sorcery
A New Core Mechanic
Since a sorcerer at level one has no metamagic or subclass in the 2024 Player’s Handbook, they have an entirely new feature: innate sorcery. This lets them, as a bonus action, unleash their magic, raising the DC of their spells by one and gaining advantage on spell attack rolls.
This lasts for one minute and has two charges, so considering that most adventuring days consist of two or fewer combat encounters, you can unleash your power all the time that matters. This feature gets upgraded at level seven, letting you use two metamagic options on spells while unleashed.
2Arcane Apotheosis
A Proper Level 20 Trait
When a 2014 sorcerer reaches level 20, the only new thing they would earn is the ability to recover four sorcery points per short rest. This feature is now roughly accessible for 2024 sorcerers at level five, so you can imagine how lackluster the ability was.
The 2024 Player’s Handbook now hasa new level 20 featurecalled arcane apotheosis, which triggers when sorcerers are under their innate sorcerer state. It allows them to use one metamagic option on each of their turns without the use of sorcery points, letting them make each spell their own.
1Metamagic Changes
You Now Gain It At Level Two
Level three used to be a big moment for sorcerers, since it was when they gained their metamagic options to alter their spells. In 2024, level three is arguably an even bigger deal, since it is when they gain their subclass, hence why metamagic is now a feature unlocked at level two.
We have added below the most significant metamagic options changes. Of particular note is the twinned spell option, which has been completely reworked: it now only affects spells that could already target more creatures if upcasted, letting you save the spell slot with a single sorcery point.
Change
Careful Spell
Choose creatures to automatically succeed in the saving throws of your spells.
1
2
It used to cost 2 Sorcery Points.
Twinned Spell
When you cast a spell that can target an additional creature when upcasted, you do so without spending the higher spell slot.
It used to only work on spells that didn’t normally target additional creatures, even when upcasted.
