Mirage Arcane
Level 7 · Illusion
- AOE
Mirage Arcane is an illusion spell at level 7, sitting on the bard, druid, and wizard lists. Cast time: 10 Minutes. Range Sight, components V/S, duration 10 days. Effect: You make terrain in an area up to 1 mile square look, sound, smell, and even feel like some other sort of terrain.
Stat Block
- Level
- 7
- School
- Illusion
- Casting Time
- 10 Minutes
- Range / Area
- Sight
- Components
- V, S
- Duration
- 10 days
- Ritual
- No
- Concentration
- No
- Classes
- Bard, Druid, Wizard
- Material
- —
Description
You make terrain in an area up to 1 mile square look, sound, smell, and even feel like some other sort of terrain. Open fields or a road could be made to resemble a swamp, hill, crevasse, or some other rough or impassable terrain. A pond can be made to seem like a grassy meadow, a precipice like a gentle slope, or a rock-strewn gully like a wide and smooth road. Similarly, you can alter the appearance of structures or add them where none are present. The spell doesn't disguise, conceal, or add creatures. The illusion includes audible, visual, tactile, and olfactory elements, so it can turn clear ground into Difficult Terrain (or vice versa) or otherwise impede movement through the area. Any piece of the illusory terrain (such as a rock or stick) that is removed from the spell's area disappears immediately. Creatures with Truesight can see through the illusion to the terrain's true form; however, all other elements of the illusion remain, so while the creature is aware of the illusion's presence, the creature can still physically interact with the illusion.
5e (2014) vs 2024 changes
This spell has both a 5e (2014) and 2024 Player's Handbook version. Doungim shows the current 2024 stat block above. Differences between editions typically affect components, range, or scaling — check both source books for the table.
Doungim Lore
School Fit
The Illusion tradition is the trickster's school. Its spells turn into whatever the caster needs them to be: a wall, a sound, a missing person, a presence that is not there. Mirage Arcane reads as Illusion the moment you see the effect — the spell creates a perceptual fiction the target's senses report as real. At level 7, a single cast of Mirage Arcane can be the most important action of the adventuring day.
Class Fit
- Bard: At the Bard table, Mirage Arcane matters most when the College's signature features are on cooldown or out of charges. Otherwise the class has cheaper answers. Mirage Arcane reaches Sight, which lets the caster stay clear of the front line.
- Druid: At tier 2, Druids juggle Pass Without Trace, Conjure Animals, and Spike Growth for concentration; Mirage Arcane fits in if it doesn't compete. At Sight, Mirage Arcane stays usable from the caster's typical positioning.
- Wizard: Arcane Recovery returns one or two slots on a short rest. Mirage Arcane's slot cost is therefore not exactly what the slot column says. Sight is enough range that Mirage Arcane doesn't pull the caster forward.
Related Spells
Frequently Asked Questions about Mirage Arcane
- What level spell is Mirage Arcane?
- Mirage Arcane is a level 7 spell from the Illusion school. The classes that can prepare it: Bard, Druid, Wizard.
- What is the range of Mirage Arcane?
- Mirage Arcane has a range of Sight from the caster.
- How long does Mirage Arcane last?
- Without concentration, Mirage Arcane runs for its full 10 days duration regardless of what else the caster is doing.
- What components and casting time does Mirage Arcane need?
- the cast needs V, S. the casting time is 10 minutes (not a standard Action).