Rope Trick — 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
• •Rope Trick in the 2024 Rules
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Quick Answer

Rope Trick is a 2nd-level transmutation spell for Wizards. You touch a rope (up to 60 feet long in the 2014 rules), it rises upright, and an invisible entrance to an extradimensional space opens at the top for 1 hour. Up to eight Medium or smaller creatures fit inside. Attacks and spells can't pass through the entrance. When the spell ends, everything inside drops out.

Overview

Rope Trick gives a party a hidden room in the middle of a dungeon. Climb the rope, pull it up after you, and from outside there is nothing to see: the entrance is invisible and the rope is gone. Attacks and spells can't cross the entrance in either direction, so you are safe from anything that can't find and reach the opening.

Its main use is resting. The spell lasts 1 hour, the same length as a short rest. It also works as a panic room after a bad fight, a hiding spot while a patrol passes, or a lookout post, since the people inside can see out through a window 3 feet wide and 5 feet tall.

It has three weaknesses. It lasts exactly 1 hour, so the timing of a full short rest is tight. When it ends, everyone inside falls from the height of the entrance, which can hurt with a long rope. And only Medium or smaller creatures fit, so the party's horse, or a druid wild-shaped into a bear, stays outside.

Stat Block

When NOT to Use This

• •You need a long rest. The space lasts 1 hour and can't be extended.
• •Someone in the party is Large or bigger. The space holds Medium or smaller creatures only.
• •You have more than eight creatures to hide.
• •The enemies include something that sees invisible objects, like a lich with 120-foot truesight, and can end the spell with Dispel Magic.
• •You want to attack from cover. Nothing you do inside can reach targets outside.

Spell Slot Efficiency

When worth the slot: Before a short rest in hostile territory, or as an escape hatch when the party needs to disappear.

When NOT worth the slot: When the party can safely rest in a cleared room anyway.

Upcasting

Rope Trick has no higher-level effect. It lasts 1 hour and holds eight creatures whatever slot you use.

Pro Tips

Tip #1: Use a short rope.

Why it works: The entrance opens at the top of the rope, and anything inside drops out when the spell ends. A creature that falls takes 1d6 bludgeoning damage per 10 feet and lands prone. A 60-foot rope means 6d6 (average 21) for everyone. A 10-foot rope means 1d6 (average 3.5).

This avoids the mistake of: Ending a restful hour by dropping the whole party 60 feet.

Tip #2: Pull the rope up behind you.

Why it works: The text says the rope can be pulled into the space, which makes it disappear from view outside. With the rope gone and the entrance invisible, there's nothing to see.

This avoids the mistake of: Leaving a rope hanging in midair in an otherwise empty room.

Tip #3: Cast it before the fight ends badly.

Why it works: It takes one action, needs no concentration, and every party member just has to climb. Climbing costs 1 extra foot of movement for every foot climbed, so a creature with 30 feet of speed climbs 15 feet per turn. That's another reason to keep the rope short.

This avoids the mistake of: Casting it at the bottom of a 60-foot rope while the owlbear is still swinging at the fighter.

Tip #4: Keep your concentration on something useful.

Why it works: Rope Trick doesn't use concentration. A wizard can cast it while keeping a concentration spell that is already running, and can still cast a concentration spell inside the space afterward.

This avoids the mistake of: Thinking you have to drop your active spell to open the hideout.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Assuming the full short rest fits

Why it's bad: The spell lasts 1 hour, and a short rest is at least 1 hour of downtime. Casting takes an action and climbing takes a few rounds of that hour. Whether a rest that starts on the ground and finishes inside counts is a DM ruling, not rules text.

Do this instead: Ask your DM how they handle it before you rely on it.

Bringing a Large companion

Why it's bad: The space holds up to eight Medium or smaller creatures. A brown bear, whether a summoned beast or a druid in Wild Shape, is Large.

Do this instead: Have the druid revert before climbing, or find another hiding place for the big creature.

Trying to attack out of it

Why it's bad: Attacks and spells can't cross through the entrance into or out of the space. The window lets you see out, nothing more.

Do this instead: Use the window to watch and plan. Climb down when you are ready to fight.

Forgetting the hour runs out

Why it's bad: Everything inside drops out when the spell ends. If enemies are waiting underneath, the party lands prone in their midst.

Do this instead: Track the time and climb down a few minutes early, after checking the window.

Usage Tips

• •Worked example: A 3rd-level wizard with Constitution 12 has 17 hit points using average hit point rolls (7 at 1st level, then 5 per level). A drop from a 60-foot rope deals 6d6, an average of 21, which can knock that wizard to 0. A 20-foot rope deals 2d6, an average of 7.
• •Climbing time: A 60-foot rope takes a creature with 30 feet of speed four turns of movement to climb, or two turns if it uses the Dash action. A 15-foot rope takes one turn.
• •Space: Eight creatures in total, each Medium or smaller. A party of five, a familiar and two rescued prisoners fit.
• •Roll fall damage with the dice roller.
• •Related guides: Invisibility for reaching the spot unseen, Pass without Trace for not being tracked, and Demiplane for an 8th-level extradimensional room you can return to. Browse the full spell guide index.

Rules Notes

• •You touch a rope up to 60 feet long (2014). One end rises until the whole rope hangs perpendicular to the ground.
• •An invisible entrance to an extradimensional space opens at the upper end and lasts until the spell ends.
• •The space is reached by climbing to the top of the rope. It holds up to eight Medium or smaller creatures.
• •The rope can be pulled into the space, making it disappear from view outside.
• •Attacks and spells can't cross through the entrance in either direction. Those inside can see out as if through a 3-foot-by-5-foot window centered on the rope.
• •Anything inside drops out when the spell ends. Falling deals 1d6 bludgeoning damage per 10 feet, to a maximum of 20d6, and the creature lands prone.
• •The 2014 SRD Antimagic Field text says an opening to an extradimensional space such as the one Rope Trick creates temporarily closes while inside the field.
• •The text doesn't say whether creatures outside can see in through the window. That is a DM ruling, not rules text.

Synergies

• •A lookout at the window: Rotate one party member at the window while the others rest. Whether a ward like Alarm reaches you inside the space is a DM ruling, not rules text.
• •Pass without Trace: Gets the party to a quiet corner to cast it without being followed.
• •Healing inside: Spells cast inside the space and aimed at creatures inside don't cross the entrance, so the cleric can heal the party in the hideout.
• •A second concentration spell: Rope Trick leaves your concentration free.

Anti-Patterns

• •Using the full 60 feet of rope when 10 feet would do.
• •Leaving the rope dangling.
• •Casting it in the open while enemies watch you climb.
• •Expecting to snipe through the window.

Tactical Modules

• •Short rest bunker: Short rope in a side room, everybody climbs, rope comes up. Check your DM's ruling on the hour.
• •Vanishing act: Mid-chase, turn a corner, cast it, climb, pull the rope. Pursuers find an empty hallway.
• •Watch post: Open it above a junction and watch patrols through the window to time your next move.
• •Prisoner rescue stash: Hide freed prisoners inside while the rest of the party finishes the job. Remember everyone drops out after an hour.

Countermeasures

• •Threat: An enemy with truesight sees the entrance. The SRD lich, pit fiend and balor all have 120-foot truesight. Response: Avoid resting where such creatures patrol. Fallback: Be ready to fight on the way down.
• •Threat: An enemy casts Dispel Magic on it. Rope Trick is a 2nd-level spell, so a 3rd-level Dispel Magic ends it automatically and everyone falls. Response: Use a short rope so the fall is small. Fallback: Keep someone at the window. Spells can't cross the entrance, so you can't counter from inside, but you can see the caster coming and climb down first.
• •Threat: An enemy waits under the rope for the spell to end. Response: Watch through the window and leave on your own terms. Fallback: Climb down ready to fight, or have a second escape spell ready.

Rope Trick in the 2024 Rules

The 2024 Player's Handbook keeps Rope Trick as a level 2 transmutation spell for Wizards. It still takes an action, works by touch, lasts 1 hour without concentration, holds up to eight Medium or smaller creatures, and drops everything inside when it ends. The material component is now just "a segment of rope."

Several details changed:

• •Any rope length. The 60-foot cap is gone. The rope hovers upward until it hangs perpendicular to the ground or reaches a ceiling.
• •The portal is the window. The 2024 text describes an Invisible 3-foot-by-5-foot portal at the top of the rope, and the creatures inside can see through it.
• •The rope can go both ways. The rope can be pulled into the space or dropped out of it.
• •Wider block. Attacks, spells, and other effects can't pass into or out of the space. The 2014 text named only attacks and spells.

The 2024 Antimagic Field says portals close temporarily while in its aura, rather than naming Rope Trick. A 2024 short rest is a 1-hour period, so the timing question from the 2014 rules still applies.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Rope Trick do in 5e?

You touch a rope and it rises upright. At the top, an invisible entrance opens to an extradimensional space that holds up to eight Medium or smaller creatures for 1 hour. Attacks and spells can't pass through the entrance, and everything inside drops out when the spell ends.

Can you short rest in Rope Trick?

The spell lasts 1 hour, and a short rest needs at least 1 hour of downtime. Casting and climbing use part of that hour, so whether the full rest fits is a DM ruling, not rules text. Ask your DM before you plan around it.

Can you long rest in Rope Trick?

No. The spell lasts 1 hour and has no way to extend it. A long rest takes 8 hours.

What happens when Rope Trick ends?

Everything inside drops out. Creatures take falling damage, 1d6 bludgeoning per 10 feet fallen, and land prone. A short rope keeps the fall small.

Can enemies see the Rope Trick entrance?

The entrance is invisible, and the rope can be pulled inside. A creature that can see invisible things, such as one with truesight, can see the entrance.

Can you attack out of Rope Trick?

No. Attacks and spells can't cross the entrance in either direction. The 2024 version also blocks other effects.

How many people fit in Rope Trick?

Up to eight creatures, each Medium or smaller. Large creatures can't use it.

Who can cast Rope Trick in 5e?

Only Wizards in the SRD, in both the 2014 and 2024 rules.

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.