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Player’s Handbook p.263
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Nystul’s Magic Aura |
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2nd-level illusion
Casting Time: 1 action You place an illusion on a creature or an object you touch so that divination spells reveal false information about it. The target can be a willing creature or an object that isn’t being carried or worn by another creature. When you cast the spell, choose one or both of the following effects. The effect lasts for the duration. If you cast this spell on the same creature or object every day for 30 days, placing the same effect on it each time, the illusion lasts until it is dispelled. False Aura. You change the way the target appears to spells and magical effects, such as detect magic, that detect magical auras. You can make a nonmagical object appear magical, a magical object appear nonmagical, or change the object’s magical aura so that it appears to belong to a specific school of magic that you choose. When you use this effect on an object, you can make the false magic apparent to any creature that handles the item. Mask. You change the way the target appears to spells and magical effects that detect creature types, such as a paladin’s Divine Sense or the trigger of a symbol spell. You choose a creature type and other spells and magical effects treat the target as if it were a creature of that type or of that alignment. |
Nystul’s Magic Aura (hereafter referred to as “NMA”) is a unique, underused spell. I rarely see it in games. For me, NMA has been especially useful for protecting my PC from detection while magically disguised. This satisfying success has prompted research into this spell’s possibilities. I’ve scoured the internet to find common questions, misconceptions, and ideas so I could compile them here for you. I’ve added a few ideas of my own. I hope you’ll offer your input, too!
Quick note: Nystul’s Magic Aura is named Arcanist’s Magic Aura in settings where Nystul does not exist.
Does NMA exist mostly for DMs to conceal their plots?
Probably, but my DMs have not used it (or I didn’t notice if they did). Try not to be angry if your DM seems to be cheating you out of information; they might be using this spell (not cheating). Turnabout is fair play, so make sure you know how NMA works and how you could use it yourself. If you’re a DM running a game with a BBEG hiding in plain sight, use NMA to hide the BBEG from basic/lazy magical detection.
How can NMA be useful for PC’s?
Brainstorm: (including ideas from Reddit.com)
- Smuggle magical weapons, especially in place with outlawed magic practices.
- Deceive a merchant into purchasing a non-magical item.
- Avoid detection during a magical disguis or transformation.
- Appear as if you are a celestial angel with a divine message to deliver.
- Create false evidence magically while hiding that it’s magically created.
- Steal a magic item and replace it with a false copy that appears magical until used.
- Conceal your magical glyphs that function as traps or protectors.
- Sneak past magical alarms, runes, glyphs, symbols, etc.
- Make a sensor like Arcane Eye slip past weak detection like Detect Magic.
- Fool someone into using a cursed item.
- Hide the magic of your wizard’s spellbook, appearing as a mundane book like a journal.
- Convince someone to stick their arm into a Bag of Devouring.
- Make your Familiar seem like a normal beast.
- Terrorize a noble’s gala as you sneak in a Necklace of Fireballs.
- Enchant a bucket of paint to seem magical, then use the paint in your personal quarters so everything seems magical, potentially seeming like arcane traps to thieves.
- Sow distrust of a pet cat by giving it an aura of transmutation to seem like it’s actually another creature that has transformed.
- Cheat in a contest of combat by bringing your magical weapon.
- Blend undead minions in with a crowd if you’re a necromancer.
- Drive a person mad as they attempt to solve a mundane puzzle box, unaware that it’s actually magically resisting their attempts.
Can NMA bypass race/alignment requirements?
Some forum contributors have boasted that they use NMA to allow their characters to use magical items for which they otherwise would not qualify. Jeremy Crawford of Wizards of the Coast weighed in on this concept. He said NMA “cannot be used to bypass a creature type requirement for magic items, feats, or anything like that.”
Is the Identify spell thwarted by NMA?
No, Identify trumps NMA. As confirmed by Jeremy Crawford, the Identify spell could prove valuable for anyone investing heaps of coins to purchase a false magical item. For this reason, NMA works as a buff for Identify. Any spellcaster who has a mercantile presence should learn to Identify.
When NMA causes a creature to believe an item is magical, when does that creature figure out that it doesn’t work?
A creature would figure out it has been fooled when it attempts to use the item. This is assuming the creature has the wit to deduce the illusion/trick. Creatures can conceivably figure out they were deceived when they attempt to attune to the item.
Is NMA merely a leftover remnant of past editions where identifying and detecting magic was more difficult?
Maybe, but it still has situational utility for those looking for it.
Can NMA make a creature vulnerable or immune to spells if it creates the illusion that the creature’s type is different?
No, NMA applies to detection magic. If Hold Person is cast on you while NMA is making you seem like a celestial creature when you’re creature type is detected, the Hold Person spell is unaffected by the illusion. Detection spells fail to identify correctly, but other spells function normaly.
Is Truesight fooled by NMA?
No, Truesight literally sees through illusions and transformations. Truesight fails to detect a magical effect’s nature.
What if a permanent NMA effect is active while NMA is cast again with a different effect that conflicts with the permanent effect?
Either the most powerful effect will prevail over the weaker effect, or the most recent effect will prevail over the older effect (while both are active). This overlap of conflicting or matching effects will usually extend a spell’s duration. This instance may last until the recent effect duration has ended, and then the permanent effect resumes. It’s slightly open to interpretation.
Who is/was Nystul, the spell’s creator?
There are a handful of D&D 5E spells that include the name of each spell’s inventor in each spell’s name. Knowing about the original spellcaster can bring a spell to life in our minds. According to a D&D Wiki page for the Greyhawk setting, here is what we know about Nystul:
“Nystul is an archmage and member of the Circle of Eight. He is also the most famous native of the Duchy of Tenh. At one time, Nystul had an apprentice named Janina . . . . The 1988 Greyhawk Adventures hardbound includes Nystul’s created spells.
Nystul developed the spells Nystul’s Magic Aura, Nystul’s Undetectable Aura, Nystul’s Blacklight Burst, Nystul’s Blackmote, Nystul’s Blazing Beam, Nystul’s Crystal Dagger, Nystul’s Crystal Dirk, Nystul’s Dancing Dweomer, Nystul’s Dancing Werelight, Nystul’s Enveloping Darkness, Nystul’s Expeditious Fire Extinguisher, Nystul’s Flash, Nystul’s Golden Revelation, Nystul’s Grue Conjuration, Nystul’s Lightburst, Nystul’s Radiant Arch, and Nystul’s Radiant Baton. He authored Libram of the Great Paravisual Emanations and Metaphysics of Mathematics.”
It’s worth noting that many (maybe all) spellcasters mentioned in D&D 5E spell names are from the Greyhawk setting. (Mordenkainen, Otiluke, Otto, Bigby, etc.)
Conclusion
I learned heaps about this spell as I researched it (though comparatively not as much as I learned about the ‘Dream’ spell in my other article). NMA has its niche in D&D 5E, even if it’s not the most common spell. It may seem like a remnant from old editions, but I’m glad it stuck around. I dream of having a D&D spell named after one of my characters.
Has your wizard ever created a spell that became known across the realms as Nystul did? If not, consider purchasing the book/PDF Strongholds & Followers from MCDM Productions. It provides a ruleset for a wizard to create a mage tower to research and discover new spells. I highly recommend the product if you want to find more ways for players to spend wealth in D&D games.
Please comment with how you’ve used the spell in your games. See you in the next one!
If you enjoyed this spell analysis, check out our other spell analyses!
