Spiritual Weapon — 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
• •Spiritual Weapon in the 2024 Rules
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Quick Answer

Spiritual Weapon is a 2nd-level evocation spell for Clerics. As a bonus action, you create a floating weapon within 60 feet and make a melee spell attack for 1d8 + your spellcasting modifier force damage. On each later turn for 1 minute, a bonus action moves it up to 20 feet and attacks again. In the 2014 rules it does not need concentration. In the 2024 rules it does.

Overview

Spiritual Weapon is a 2nd-level evocation spell that gives a Cleric a second attack every turn. Clerics can cast it from 3rd level. It lasts up to 10 rounds and uses only bonus actions, so your action stays free.

The damage per hit is modest: 1d8 plus your Wisdom modifier, 7.5 on average with +3. The value is that it repeats every round without costing more slots. In the 2014 rules it also has no concentration, so you can run it alongside Bless, Spirit Guardians, or Hold Person.

That last point is the main reason it is so popular, and it is also the biggest 2024 change. Under the 2024 rules Spiritual Weapon needs concentration, which puts it in direct competition with every other concentration spell a Cleric has.

Stat Block

When NOT to Use This

• •The fight will be over in a round or two. The spell earns its slot over several turns.
• •You need to cast a leveled spell with your action this turn. In the 2014 rules, a bonus-action spell limits your action to a cantrip.
• •Your bonus action is already committed every turn, for example to Healing Word.
• •In the 2024 rules, you are already concentrating on something more important.

Spell Slot Efficiency

When worth the slot: Any fight you expect to last three rounds or more.

When NOT worth the slot: Short fights, or turns when you need a leveled action spell (2014).

Upcasting (2014)

The damage increases by 1d8 for every two slot levels above 2nd.

A 3rd-level casting gains nothing in 2014. Cast it at 2nd level unless you are going to 4th or higher.

Pro Tips

Tip #1: Cast it on turn one and keep it going.

Why it works: Every round it lasts is a free attack. Cast early, and the spell has the most rounds to work with.

This avoids the mistake of: Saving it until the fight is half over.

Tip #2: Sequence it with Spirit Guardians (2014).

Why it works: On turn one, cast Spiritual Weapon with your bonus action and a cantrip with your action. On turn two, cast Spirit Guardians with your action and attack with the weapon as a bonus action. Moving and attacking with the weapon is not casting a spell, so the bonus-action spell rule doesn't block it.

This avoids the mistake of: Trying to cast both in one turn, which the 2014 rules don't allow.

Tip #3: Put the weapon where you aren't.

Why it works: The weapon attacks creatures within 5 feet of itself, not you. You can stay at range or in a safe spot while it fights up to 60 feet away, then moves 20 feet per turn.

This avoids the mistake of: Walking into melee to use a spell that doesn't need you there.

Tip #4: Target low AC.

Why it works: It is a melee spell attack using your spell attack bonus. Enemies with low AC take more hits, and the spell can choose a new target each turn.

This avoids the mistake of: Hammering the heavily armored knight while an easier target stands next to it.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Casting Spiritual Weapon and a leveled spell on the same turn (2014)

Why it's bad: After casting a spell as a bonus action, you can only cast a cantrip with a casting time of 1 action that turn.

Do this instead: Pair it with a cantrip like Sacred Flame on the casting turn.

Taking opportunity attacks with it

Why it's bad: The weapon only attacks when you use a bonus action on your turn. The spell gives it no reactions.

Do this instead: Count on one attack per turn, on your turn.

Treating it as a creature

Why it's bad: The spell describes a spectral weapon. It has no hit points, AC, or stat block in the spell text. Whether it can be attacked, block a doorway, or count for flanking is up to the DM.

Do this instead: Ask your DM how they treat it before you plan around it.

Upcasting to 3rd level (2014)

Why it's bad: In the 2014 rules the damage only goes up every two slot levels. A 3rd-level slot deals the same damage as a 2nd-level slot.

Do this instead: Cast it at 2nd level, or at 4th if you want 2d8.

Usage Tips

• •Worked example: A 5th-level cleric with 16 Wisdom has +6 to hit with spell attacks. Against AC 15, the weapon hits on a 9 or higher. Rolls of 9 to 19 hit for 7.5 on average, and a natural 20 crits for 2d8 + 3, an average of 12. That works out to about 4.7 damage per round.
• •Over a full fight: If the weapon attacks for all 10 rounds, that is about 47 expected damage from one 2nd-level slot, using only bonus actions.
• •Roll a hit with the dice roller, or compare it with other options in the damage calculator.
• •For a damage spell that uses your action, see Spirit Guardians. For other Cleric support spells, see Bless (concentration) and Aid (no concentration), or browse the spell guide index.

Rules Notes

• •Casting time is 1 bonus action and range is 60 feet. The weapon appears within range.
• •When you cast it, you can make a melee spell attack against a creature within 5 feet of the weapon.
• •On a hit, the target takes force damage equal to 1d8 + your spellcasting ability modifier.
• •On each later turn, a bonus action moves the weapon up to 20 feet and lets it attack again.
• •The spell lasts 1 minute, or until you cast it again. It does not need concentration (2014).
• •Each two slot levels above 2nd add 1d8 damage (2014).
• •On a critical hit, the 1d8 is doubled, not the modifier.

Synergies

• •Spirit Guardians (2014): Both run at once, one on your action and one on your bonus action.
• •Bless or Hold Person (2014): These use concentration; Spiritual Weapon doesn't, so they combine.
• •Cantrips: On the turn you cast it, add Sacred Flame or another action cantrip.
• •Faerie Fire from an ally: Advantage applies to the weapon's attacks too.

Anti-Patterns

• •Casting it in the last round of a fight.
• •Upcasting it to 3rd level in the 2014 rules.
• •Dropping concentration on a strong spell to cast it in the 2024 rules.

Tactical Modules

• •Opening turn (2014): Spiritual Weapon plus a cantrip, then Spirit Guardians next turn.
• •Back-line pressure: Send the weapon after an enemy caster while you stay with the party.
• •Finisher: Pick off wounded enemies each turn with the weapon's attack.

Countermeasures

• •Threat: Enemies with high AC. Response: Target a different creature within reach of the weapon. Fallback: Use your action on a saving-throw spell instead.
• •Threat: Your bonus action is needed for Healing Word. Response: Skip the weapon's attack that turn. Fallback: The spell keeps going; attack again next turn.
• •Threat: Dispel Magic. Response: Recast if the fight is still going. Fallback: Switch to cantrips.

Spiritual Weapon in the 2024 Rules

The 2024 Player's Handbook keeps Spiritual Weapon as a 2nd-level evocation spell for Clerics. It still has a bonus-action casting time and 60-foot range, and it still hits for 1d8 + your spellcasting modifier force damage. You still move it 20 feet and attack again with a bonus action on later turns.

Two changes matter a lot. First, it now requires concentration. You can no longer run it alongside Spirit Guardians, Bless, or Hold Person. Second, upcasting is better: the damage increases by 1d8 for every slot level above 2nd, so a 3rd-level casting deals 2d8 and a 4th-level casting deals 3d8.

The 2024 rules also limit you to one spell slot per turn. Casting Spiritual Weapon with a slot means your action can't be another spell that uses a slot. In the 2024 rules, Spiritual Weapon is no longer a Life Domain spell.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Spiritual Weapon require concentration in 5e?

In the 2014 rules, no. That is why it combines so well with Spirit Guardians and Bless. In the 2024 rules, yes. It lasts up to 1 minute with concentration.

How much damage does Spiritual Weapon do in 5e?

It deals 1d8 plus your spellcasting ability modifier in force damage per hit, 7.5 on average with +3. In 2014 it gains 1d8 for every two slot levels above 2nd. In 2024 it gains 1d8 for every slot level above 2nd.

Can Spiritual Weapon make opportunity attacks in 5e?

No. It only attacks when you cast it and when you use a bonus action on your later turns to move it and attack. The spell gives it no reaction.

Can you cast Spiritual Weapon and Spirit Guardians on the same turn in 5e?

No. In the 2014 rules, after a bonus-action spell you can only cast a cantrip with your action. In the 2024 rules, you can only expend one spell slot per turn. In 2014 you can cast them on consecutive turns and keep both running.

Can Spiritual Weapon be attacked or destroyed in 5e?

The spell text gives it no hit points or Armor Class, so it is not a creature you can normally attack. It ends when the duration runs out, when you cast it again, or if it is dispelled. Any other ruling is up to the DM.

Can Spiritual Weapon flank in 5e?

Flanking is an optional rule in the Dungeon Master's Guide that requires a creature. The spell does not make the weapon a creature, so by the text it can't flank. Some DMs rule otherwise.

Does Spiritual Weapon use my weapon's damage in 5e?

No. It always deals force damage equal to 1d8 plus your spellcasting ability modifier, whatever shape you give it. It uses your spell attack bonus, not your weapon attack bonus.

Is Spiritual Weapon good in 5e?

Yes, especially in the 2014 rules, where it adds a bonus-action attack every turn without concentration. In the 2024 rules it is still solid but now competes for your concentration with Bless and Spirit Guardians.

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.