Fire Bolt — Complete D&D 5e Spell Guide

Table of Contents

• •Quick Answer
• •Overview
• •Stat Block
• •When NOT to Use This
• •Spell Slot Efficiency
• •Pro Tips
• •Common Mistakes to Avoid
• •Usage Tips
• •Rules Notes
• •Synergies
• •Anti-Patterns
• •Tactical Modules
• •Countermeasures
• •Fire Bolt in the 2024 Rules
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Quick Answer

Fire Bolt is an evocation cantrip for Sorcerers and Wizards. Make a ranged spell attack against a creature or object within 120 feet. On a hit it takes 1d10 fire damage, and a flammable object that nobody is wearing or carrying catches fire. The damage becomes 2d10 at 5th level, 3d10 at 11th, and 4d10 at 17th.

Overview

Fire Bolt is the default attack cantrip for arcane casters. In the 2014 SRD it has the biggest damage die of any attack-roll cantrip on the Sorcerer and Wizard lists, and it reaches 120 feet. As an attack roll it can crit, and anything that grants advantage makes it better.

Its weakness is the damage type. Of the 334 creature stat blocks in the 2014 SRD, 36 are immune to fire and 18 resist it, more than for acid, cold, or lightning. That includes fire elementals, every SRD devil, hell hounds, red and brass dragons, and magma mephits. Seven are vulnerable to fire, including the mummy, the mummy lord, the ice mephit, and the treant.

It also targets objects, which most damage cantrips don't: a rope bridge, a web, or a hay wagon from 120 feet away.

Stat Block

When NOT to Use This

• •The target is immune to fire, like a fire elemental, an imp, or a hell hound. Carry a second damage type such as Ray of Frost or Shocking Grasp.
• •An enemy within 5 feet can see you. Disadvantage drops a 65% hit chance to about 42%.
• •The target has three-quarters cover. It gets +5 to AC, so your hit chance falls by a quarter of the die.
• •A leveled spell or a control effect would end the fight faster than 1d10 damage.

Spell Slot Efficiency

When worth the action: Any round where you aren't casting a leveled spell and the target doesn't resist fire.

When NOT worth the action: Against fire-immune enemies, or when you need to escape melee (Shocking Grasp does that).

Damage by character level

Expected damage assumes a spellcasting ability of 16 at level 1, 18 at level 5, and 20 from level 11. That gives +5, +7, +9, and +11 to hit. Critical hits on a natural 20 are included.

How it compares at 5th level

Same caster (+7 to hit, DC 15) against a target with AC 15 and a +2 save, no resistances.

Fire Bolt ties an uninvested Eldritch Blast. Agonizing Blast pulls the Warlock far ahead.

Pro Tips

Tip #1: Use it to stop a troll from regenerating.

Why it works: A troll regains 10 hit points (15 in 2024) at the start of its turn, unless it took acid or fire damage since its last turn. A troll that starts its turn at 0 hit points and doesn't regenerate dies, so one Fire Bolt hit after it drops is enough.

This avoids the mistake of: Knocking the troll to 0 and watching it stand back up.

Tip #2: Shoot the objects, not just the creatures.

Why it works: A flammable object hit by Fire Bolt ignites if nobody is wearing or carrying it. A 5-foot cube of Web exposed to fire burns away, and a rope, curtain, or hay cart can become part of the battlefield.

This avoids the mistake of: Thinking every problem in the room has to be a creature.

Tip #3: Double up with Quickened Spell.

Why it works: A Sorcerer who spends 2 sorcery points to Quicken one Fire Bolt can cast a second with the action, about 15.4 expected damage at 5th level. It is legal in both editions: 2014 allows a 1-action cantrip after a bonus-action spell, and the 2024 Quickened Spell only bars level 1+ spells on the same turn.

This avoids the mistake of: Quickening a leveled spell and then casting another leveled spell, which both editions forbid.

Tip #4: Twin it for 1 sorcery point (2014).

Why it works: The 2014 Twinned Spell costs 1 sorcery point for a cantrip and works on any spell that can target only one creature. Fire Bolt qualifies, so you hit two enemies for one action.

This avoids the mistake of: Hitting one target when a single sorcery point buys a second attack.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Firing it point-blank

Why it's bad: You have disadvantage on a ranged attack roll if a hostile creature within 5 feet can see you and isn't incapacitated.

Do this instead: Step away first, or cast something else if the opportunity attack isn't worth the risk.

Assuming Potent Cantrip helps it (2014)

Why it's bad: The 2014 Evocation Wizard's Potent Cantrip only applies when a creature succeeds on a saving throw against your cantrip. Fire Bolt uses an attack roll, so a miss still deals nothing.

Do this instead: Count on Empowered Evocation at Wizard level 10, which adds your Intelligence modifier to one damage roll of a Wizard evocation spell, including Fire Bolt.

Setting fire to what an enemy is wearing

Why it's bad: The bolt only ignites flammable objects that aren't worn or carried. Hitting a cultist does not set its robe alight.

Do this instead: Target the curtain or hay next to them. How fire spreads from there isn't in the spell text, so it is a DM ruling, not rules text.

Usage Tips

• •Worked example (mummy): A 2014 or 2024 mummy has AC 11 and is vulnerable to fire. A 5th-level Wizard at +7 hits on a 4 or higher, 85% of the time, for 22 damage on average on a hit (2d10 doubled). Expected damage per cast is 19.8, so its 58 hit points last about three casts.
• •Worked example (troll): The troll has AC 15. A +7 Fire Bolt hits 65% of the time. If two casters with Fire Bolt act between the troll dropping and its next turn, at least one hits about 88% of the time (1 − 0.35 × 0.35).
• •Ice mephit: AC 11, 21 hit points, vulnerable to fire. A 5th-level hit destroys it when the 2d10 roll is 11 or more before doubling, 55% of hits.
• •Roll the damage in the dice roller. For an area of fire, see Fireball.

Rules Notes

• •Target: one creature or object within 120 feet. The text does not require you to see the target, so you can attack an unseen creature's location with disadvantage.
• •Ranged spell attack, 1d10 fire on a hit. A critical hit doubles the dice. The close-combat disadvantage rule applies.
• •A flammable object hit by the spell ignites if it isn't being worn or carried.
• •Scaling uses total character level, not your level in one class. The 2024 SRD's multiclassing rules say so. The 2014 SRD text says only "when you reach 5th level," and its multiclassing section doesn't mention cantrips; Wizards of the Coast's 2014 rulings (Sage Advice, outside the SRD) give the same character-level answer.

Synergies

• •Faerie Fire: Attack rolls against outlined creatures have advantage. At 5th level against AC 15, that raises Fire Bolt's hit chance from 65% to about 88%.
• •Find Familiar: A familiar within 5 feet of the target can take the Help action, giving your next attack roll against it advantage.
• •Empowered Evocation: A 10th-level Evocation Wizard adds their Intelligence modifier to the damage.

Anti-Patterns

• •Casting it at the fire elemental "just to check."
• •Shooting a prone target from range. Ranged attacks against a prone creature have disadvantage in both editions.

Tactical Modules

• •Troll finisher: Ready Fire Bolt to trigger when the troll drops, so the fire lands before its next turn.
• •Bridge cutter: Burn the rope bridge after your party crosses.

Countermeasures

• •Threat: Fire resistance or immunity. Response: Switch damage type. Fallback: Help, or a control spell.
• •Threat: An enemy closes to melee. Response: Move away before casting. Fallback: Shocking Grasp, which stops its opportunity attack on a hit in both editions.
• •Threat: Mirror Image or high AC. Response: Use a saving-throw spell, which ignores the duplicates. Fallback: Let allies with advantage take the target.

Fire Bolt in the 2024 Rules

The 2024 Player's Handbook keeps Fire Bolt nearly word for word: same school, classes, range, attack, damage, and scaling. The object line now says a flammable object "starts burning" instead of "ignites." In the 2024 rules, Burning is a defined hazard: a burning object or creature takes 1d4 fire damage at the start of each of its turns until the fire is put out.

Several class rules around it changed:

• •Potent Cantrip: The 2024 Evocation Wizard gets it at level 3, and it now covers misses. When a Fire Bolt misses, the target still takes half damage. At 5th level against AC 15, that raises expected damage from 7.7 to about 9.6.
• •Twinned Spell: The 2024 version only increases a spell's effective level to add a target. Cantrips can't be cast at a higher level, so Fire Bolt can no longer be Twinned.
• •Quickened Spell: Still allows two Fire Bolts in one turn (Tip #3).
• •New access: Tieflings with the Infernal legacy know Fire Bolt. Circle of the Land Druids who choose arid land always have it prepared from Druid level 3. Any character with the Magic Initiate (Wizard) feat, which the Sage background grants, can learn it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much damage does Fire Bolt do in 5e?

1d10 fire on a hit, 5.5 on average, rising to 2d10 at 5th level, 3d10 at 11th, and 4d10 at 17th. A critical hit doubles the dice.

What is Fire Bolt's range in 5e?

120 feet. No SRD damage cantrip reaches farther. Eldritch Blast, the 2014 Chill Touch, and the 2024 Sorcerous Burst match it.

Can Fire Bolt set things on fire in 5e?

Yes. A flammable object hit by Fire Bolt ignites (2024: "starts burning") if it isn't being worn or carried. It can't set a creature's clothing or gear on fire.

Is Fire Bolt a spell attack in 5e?

Yes, a ranged spell attack (proficiency bonus plus spellcasting modifier). It can crit, and it has disadvantage if an enemy within 5 feet can see you.

Can Fire Bolt hit objects in 5e?

Yes. It targets a creature or an object within range, which makes it useful against webs, ropes, and other obstacles.

Is Fire Bolt or Eldritch Blast better in 5e?

For a Warlock with Agonizing Blast, Eldritch Blast: about 12.9 expected damage at 5th level versus 7.7. Without invocations they average the same. Eldritch Blast is Warlock-only in the SRD.

Does Fire Bolt scale with Wizard level or character level in 5e?

Character level. The 2024 SRD says cantrip upgrades use total character level unless the spell says otherwise. The 2014 SRD spell says only "when you reach 5th level" and its multiclassing rules don't mention cantrips, but Wizards of the Coast's official 2014 rulings (Sage Advice, outside the SRD) also say character level. A Fighter 4 / Wizard 1 casts a 2d10 Fire Bolt.

Who can cast Fire Bolt in 5e?

In the 2014 SRD, Sorcerers and Wizards, plus High Elves, who learn one Wizard cantrip of their choice. In the 2024 rules, Sorcerers, Wizards, Infernal Tieflings, arid-land Circle of the Land Druids, and anyone with Magic Initiate (Wizard). The 2014 SRD mage and archmage stat blocks cast it too.

Citations: SRD 5.1 (2014 rules), SRD 5.2.1 (2024 rules)

Includes material from the System Reference Document 5.1 and 5.2.1 by Wizards of the Coast LLC, licensed under CC BY 4.0.