Aberrant Mind Sorcerer: Psionic Spell List - What Spell Should You Choose?
Aberant Mind Sorcerer is a Sorcerous Origins introduced in the Dungeons and Dragons 5e book, Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. Aberrant Mind is my favorite of the Sorcerous Origins. The potential for story and the features they get are really good. Amongst their features is the Psionic Spell List which are free Psionic Spells that they get to add to their spells known. They are allowed to swap out their Psionic Spells with divination or enchantment spells from the Sorcerer, Warlock, and Wizard spell lists.
Here are the spells from the Psionic Spell List:
1st-Level
Arms of Hadar (1st-level)
Dissonant Whispers (1st-level)
Mind Sliver (Cantrip)*
3rd-Level
Calm Emotions (2nd-level)*
Detect Thoughts (2nd-level)*
5th-Level
Hunger of Hadar (3rd-level)
Sending (3rd-level)
7th-Level
Evard’s Black Tentacles (4th-level)
Summon Aberration (4th-level)
9th-Level
Rary’s Telepathic Bond (5th-level)
Telekinesis (5th-level)*
*Available on the Sorcerer Spell List
Of the spells offered, Mind Sliver, Calm Emotions, Detect Thoughts, and Telekinesis are already on the Sorcerer’s available spells list. All of the other spells are only available to Aberrant Mind Sorcerers through the Psionic Spells class feature. I would keep this in mind when deciding whether or not to swap out the spell. Once swapped out, you cannot swap back to the original spell (unless your DM rules differently, but this appears to be a one-way street). There is the benefit that you can pick up spells that are not normally available to a Sorcerer via this feature. Any spell that is on the Sorcerer’s spell list will be marked with an asterisk (*), so it might be worth your while to swap out Calm Emotions for Enthrall otherwise you will not have access to that spell. Let’s take a look at the options available.
Other options for Cantrips:
Encode Thoughts*
Friends*
True Strike*
Other options for 1st-level:
Charm Person*
Comprehend Languages*
Detect Magic*
Gift of Alacrity
Hex
Identify
Silvery Barbs*
Sleep*
Tasha’s Hideous Laughter
Other options for 2nd-level:
Augury
Borrowed Knowledge
Crown of Madness*
Enthrall
Fortune’s Favor
Gift of Gab
Hold Person*
Jim’s Glowing Coin
Locate Object
See Invisibility*
Suggestion*
Mind Spike*
Tasha’s Mind Whip*
Other options for 3rd-level:
Catnap*
Clairvoyance*
Enemies Abound*
Fast Friends
Incite Greed*
Tongues*
Other options for 4th-level:
Arcane Eye
Charm Monster
Confusion*
Divination
Dominate Beast
Raulothim’s Psychic Lance*
Other options for 5th-level:
Contact Other Plane
Dominate Person*
Geas
Hold Monster*
Legend Lore
Modify Memory
Scrying
Synaptic Static*
*Available on the Sorcerer Spell List
Let’s go spell by spell and see if there is a better option. Remember that you can only swap out spells for those of the same level. I’m going to concentrate on the spells that are not on the Sorcerer’s spell list since this is a way to get your hands on spells that are not usually available. I would be less likely to swap out a spell for one that is already available to Sorcerers.
Cantrips
Mind Sliver is available to Sorcerers, but so are all of the other options. I don’t see any need to swap this out. Besides, it is a good attack cantrip with the nice side-effect of hurting your opponent’s next saving throw.
1st-Level Spells
Arms of Hadar is a great spell if you are surrounded. I used this quite a bit with my goblin Aberrant Mind Sorcerer because he could bonus action disengage and move away after popping off this spell. The drawback to this spell is that you have to be surrounded by enemies for it to work which is exactly the position that you don’t want to be in. It is good to have a spell like this just in case you do get surrounded.
Dissonant Whispers is one of my favorite spells to upcast (a Great Old One Warlock casting this spell at higher levels will love the results). It is also a candidate for Twinning. This is another spell that is not on the Sorcerer’s spell list.
The Options:
Gift of Alacrity is one of my favorite 1st-level spells and I would swap for it in a heartbeat. I used this spell as part of a build that was focused on having the highest initiative roll possible.
Hex is usually only available to Warlocks so being able to pick this one up is kind of nice.
Identify is good to have if you don’t have a wizard to cast this for you and it can be cast as a ritual spell.
Tasha’s Hideous Laughter can make an opponent prone which could give your allies advantage on attack, but it requires concentration. This is an interesting spell but the spells on the Psionic Spell list are better.
My opinion: I would keep with the spells on the Psionic Spell List for the most part, but would be happy to trade Arms of Hadar for Gift of Alacrity.
2nd-Level Spells
Where 1st-level had two really good spells and some very good options, 2nd-level has two niche spells and some options that are not awe-inspiring. If I could swap out either Calm Emotions or Detect Thoughts for 1st-level spells, I would but this is not allowed. The added bonus is that both spells are available to Sorcerers, so if you really want either spell, you can always get it through the natural progression of spell acquisition.
The Options:
Augury has one of the most obtuse descriptions in the Player’s Handbook. It also has the chance of being a fun role-play moment. Worth a 2nd-level spell slot? That depends on whether or not you want to cast another spell or lose/gain a companion.
Borrowed Knowledge comes from the Strixhaven book and gives a character proficiency in a skill for one hour without using up one’s concentration. This could be very useful for a party that lacks certain skills needed for an adventure, quest, or mission.
Enthrall could be useful but feels just as niche as either of the spells that it could be replacing.
Fortune’s Favor is from the Guide to Wildemount. The spell has a casting time of one minute and costs 100 gp every time you cast it. This plays like the spell scroll or potion that has been on your character sheet since that first adventure, but with a one-hour duration which will force players to use it before they lose it.
Gift of Gab is the definition of niche.
Locate Object is not going to change the outcome of a combat, but it could curtail the elaborate plans of a DM’s gather quest.
There are so many really good spells that are already available on the Sorcerer’s spell list that would be better choices. I’d rather have Hold Person, See Invisibility, Suggestion, Mind Spike, or Tasha’s Mind Whip.
My opinion: Add spells that are more useful to your campaign, but I think those spells are already found on the Sorcerer’s spell list.
3rd-Level Spells
Hunger of Hadar is a nice battlefield control spell with lots of flavor. The affected area has difficult terrain, causes blindness, cold damage, and those that end their turn inside it must make a Dexterity saving throw or take acid damage. It does a lot with your concentration but cannot be upcast.
Sending is one of those spells that is very useful when you need it. I have used it when the party is split or to send a message to friends, family, or benefactors who are far away. I will admit I’ve used this spell mostly outside of combat and more for role-playing than for tactical purposes.
The options:
Only Fast Friends from Acquisitions Inc. is from outside the Sorcerer’s spell list and it is so similar to Charm Person that it doesn’t feel worth the swap.
My opinion: Stick with the Psionic Spell List and acquire the divination and enchantment spells you like normally.
4th-Level Spells
Evard’s Black Tentacles is another battlefield control spell. It is the Entangle version of Arms of Hadar.
Summon Aberration is amongst the very good summoning spells from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything and none of them are available to Sorcerers. I would keep this spell and hold onto it for all its worth since it upcasts very nicely.
The Options:
Arcane Eye can break a dungeon faster than you can say abracadabra.
Charm Monster keeps a pesky monster under control.
Divination is Augury’s big brother and can take the DM’s lunch money.
Dominate Beast make that beast your b-word (family-friendly content here).
My opinion: Swap out Evard’s Black Tentacles and choose something from the options that fit your campaign.
5th-Level Spells
Rary’s Telepathic Bond is very useful and can have the party break into different pieces and still keep those communication lines open with this non-concentration spell.
Telekinesis is both useful inside and outside of combat. The only downside of this spell is that it is already available to Sorcerers, so swapping it out for something else might not be a bad idea.
The Options:
Contact Other Plane allows you to ask the DM five questions but you have a chance of taking damage and going insane. If you have the chance to get some lore before leaving on an adventure then this might be the way to go.
Geas is a 30-day charm spell that takes a minute to cast and requires the target to understand the words that are coming out of your mouth.
Legend Lore lets you know more about the things you know a little about.
Modify Memory pretty much modifies the memories of the target and is way more effective outside of combat than in it.
Scrying is a nice way to spy on an enemy or potential target.
My opinion: Let’s call this level the spy option spells. Depending on your DM, they will either love the optional spells or hate them. It depends if they have a ton of lore and details that they are all too happy to dump onto their players or if they are making it all up as they go along. As a player, I really like the two spells provided on the Psionic Spell List, but knowledge is power, and swapping for the divination alternatives is not a bad idea.
There you have it the options for Aberrant Mind Sorcerers to swap out their Psionic Spell List spells. Do you have a favorite? What spells do you hate on this list? Let me know in the comments.
