Tongues
Level 3 · Divination
- Utility
Listed under divination, Tongues costs a 3rd-level slot for bard, cleric, sorcerer, warlock, and wizard casters. Cast time: Action. Range Touch, components V/M, duration 1 hour. Material: a miniature ziggurat. Effect: This spell grants the creature you touch the ability to understand any spoken or signed language that it hears or sees.
Stat Block
- Level
- 3
- School
- Divination
- Casting Time
- Action
- Range / Area
- Touch
- Components
- V, M
- Duration
- 1 Hour
- Ritual
- No
- Concentration
- No
- Classes
- Bard, Cleric, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard
- Material
- a miniature ziggurat
Description
This spell grants the creature you touch the ability to understand any spoken or signed language that it hears or sees. Moreover, when the target communicates by speaking or signing, any creature that knows at least one language can understand it if that creature can hear the speech or see the signing.
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
Divination is the school of answers. Where is it; what is it; what will it be; who said what to whom — every Divination spell answers a question the caster could not otherwise reach. Tongues is Divination because the spell answers a question the caster could not otherwise reach. Tier-2 play opens up 3rd-level slots regularly; Tongues fits the daily rotation.
Class Fit
- Bard: A Bard prepares Tongues from the known list, which means it stays on the sheet for several levels of play before retraining is an option.
- Cleric: Clerics prepare Tongues from the full Cleric list each day; the question is not whether the class knows it but whether today is the day to prep it.
- Sorcerer: Metamagic is the angle for Tongues on a Sorcerer. Twin, Quicken, Subtle, Heightened, and Extended each change what the spell does at the table.
- Warlock: Tier 1 Warlocks have a single slot; tier 2 have two. Tongues only earns its known-spell slot if the build casts it most short rests.
- Wizard: Arcane Recovery returns one or two slots on a short rest. Tongues's slot cost is therefore not exactly what the slot column says.
Related Spells
Frequently Asked Questions about Tongues
- What level spell is Tongues?
- Tongues is a level 3 spell from the Divination school. The classes that can prepare it: Bard, Cleric, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard.
- What is the range of Tongues?
- Tongues is cast via touch. The caster has to reach the target with a successful melee touch (if the target is unwilling).
- How long does Tongues last?
- Without concentration, Tongues runs for its full 1 hour duration regardless of what else the caster is doing.
- What components and casting time does Tongues need?
- For Tongues: Tongues is cast with V, M; on top of that, Material component: a miniature ziggurat.