The best DnD Magical Secrets spells for your 5e Bard

The DnD Magical Secrets feature is one of many that makes the Bard such a versatile class. Once you reach a high enough level, you can pick and choose any spell you please. Turn your Bard into a damage-dealing machine, a melee monster, a high-powered healer, or the best supporting player that Dungeons and Dragons has ever seen. But with so many options comes tough decision-making. Need help choosing your Magical Secrets spells? You’ve come to the right place.

Below you’ll find a reminder of how Magical Secrets works, straight from the core DnD books. Once you know how your DnD Bard works, you can start selecting 5e spells from the various DnD classes spell lists. Our guide can help you find the top picks for your perfect DnD character build.

Here’s everything you need to know about Magical Secrets:

What is DnD Magical Secrets?

Magical Secrets is a class feature exclusive to the Bards of Dungeons and Dragons. Most of them gain it at level ten, and it allows them to learn spells from outside the usual Bard spells list.

A Bard gains the benefit of Magical Secrets several times in their adventuring career. Starting at level ten, they can learn two spells of their choice from another class’ spell list. They then learn two extra spells at level 14 and two more at level 18.

Any spell you choose must be of a level you can already cast. Basically, if you can’t cast a level three Bard spell, you can’t suddenly learn a third-level DnD Wizard spell. DnD cantrips are always fair game, though.

If you learn a spell through Magical Secrets, it counts as a Bard spell for you. It also counts towards your list of known spells.

College of Lore Bard

We said that most Bards learn their Magical Secrets at level ten, but there’s one exception to the rule – College of Lore Bards. This DnD Bard subclass gets the Additional Magical Secrets feature at level six, which gives them another two spells. This means they can access other spell lists early, and they can learn eight spells rather than six.

Best spells for DnD Magical Secrets

Level 6

If you’re a Lore Bard, you’ve got first dibs on everyone else’s spells. Here’s our top picks from the available selection:

Counterspell

Counterspell is perhaps the must-pick Magical Secrets spell. Attempting to cancel out an enemy’s spell is an expensive gamble, given that you’ve lost a level three spell slot if you fail. But its impact on the game can be so great, that it’s hard not to choose Counterspell.

Pass Without Trace

+10 to Stealth checks is fantastic in any campaign, especially if you don’t have a DnD Rogue available to scout on your behalf. With this spell, even the party’s DnD Paladin might have a shot of sneaking through the dungeon. Plus, improving your Stealth maintains your Bard’s reputation as the resident Skill Monkey.

Fireball

It’s Fireball, need we say more? DnD Fireball is one of the tabletop RPG’s best damage spells. Bards aren’t usually known as the big hitters of their party, so this might not make too much sense with your build. But we strongly recommend having a Fireball on hand as a back-up plan.

Shield

We wouldn’t usually advise taking a low-level spell like Shield. After all, you’ve only got so many Magical Secrets spells you can select. But Bards are on the squishier side when it comes to armor class and defense, so any spell that helps keep you alive is an excellent choice.

Haste

Haste lets you give a creature an extra action on their turn, which can be particularly useful for your party’s Striker. It requires you to concentrate, but if you can keep that up, Haste 5e can be a huge boon for your party in battle. It also slots well into the Bard’s support role.

Revivify

As long as you have a diamond available, Revivify is a ridiculously potent spell. You can bring a fallen friend back from the dead – who doesn’t want that?

Fly

This won’t be an impressive spell if you’re already playing an Owlin or an Aarakocra, but flying vastly improves your mobility. If you can’t already fly and you don’t want to wait to learn Find Greater Steed, then give your Bard the power of flight.

Misty Step

Misty Step is another low-level pick, but the ability to teleport as a bonus action should never be overlooked. If you’re not already using those bonus actions, this is an excellent option.

Spiritual Weapon

Speaking of bonus actions, Spiritual Weapon is another excellent way to make use of them. Use DnD Cleric magic to summon an extra weapon that seriously ups your damage output each turn – as long as those bonus action attacks hit, that is. The fact this spell doesn’t require concentration is also a huge advantage.

Level 10

If you aren’t a Lore Bard, any of the options we’ve already mentioned above are still top picks. However, if you want to check out spells beyond level three, here are our recommendations.

Find Greater Steed

Summoning a beefy creature to act as your mount is pretty good. The fact that some of your possible mounts can fly or move at incredible speeds is even better. Find Greater Steed offers mobility, extra potential attacks, and animal companionship. This gets a strong ‘yes’ from us.

Steel Wind Strike

If you’re a Bard that specializes in DnD weapon attacks, Steel Wind Strike is a top-tier way to dole out damage. Its teleportation ability also makes it an excellent way to move around the battlefield.

Wall of Force

Wall of Force grants you and your enemies a near-impenetrable shield of protection. We don’t need to delve too deep into D&D strategy to tell you how useful that can be.

Telekinesis

Restrain enemies in mid-air, throw an object at a foe to deal damage, or maneuver key items without putting yourself in harm’s way. Telekinesis gives you great utility, battlefield control, and creative damage options.

Level 14

Now we’re in the big leagues, so you’ll want to choose your Magical Secrets spells carefully. Here’s what we’d pick:

Heal

If your party doesn’t already have strong healers, Heal is a must. 70 hit points and a cure for blindness, deafness, and disease? Yes please. Plus, you can upcast it if you’re in a real bind.

Contingency

Creative roleplayers can create plenty of interesting combos with Contingency. Immediately heal if you take too much damage, or Misty Step as soon as an enemy you’re luring gets too close. The sky (and the max spell level of five) is the limit.

Simulacrum

Simulacrum allows you to make a body double of most creatures, which has some excellent uses. Perhaps you’re trying to protect a VIP NPC from assassination, or you’re creating a distraction while the rest of you Stealth into a protected area. Even better, you could copy yourself. Now you have a double who can use all your abilities and follows your command. The possibilities are near endless, and this spell can get very broken.

Level 18

If you’ve made it this far, you can now cast the most powerful spells in the game. With that in mind, we’d choose:

Mass Heal

Mass Heal is the logical conclusion for any healer build. Deal 700 hit points out among any number of creatures within range, and cure them of being blinded or deafened. It does what it says on the tin.

Wish

Wish is arguably one of the most powerful spells in the game, with the potential to remake an entire DnD campaign based on what you wish for. Absolutely choose Wish 5e, and use it wisely.

Meteor Swarm

40d6 of damage in a 40-foot area of effect spell is exactly as chaotic as it sounds. Plus, you can target any space within a mile of you. As a Bard, you can’t do much to protect allies that get caught in the crossfire of Meteor Swarm, but if the stars align, you can take out a small army in one go, by yourself.

Have you set your heart on a DnD subclass for your Bard yet? If not, our guide can explain all your options. We can also help you choose the right DnD races and 5e feats for your next character.