What’s The Difference Between A Wizard, Warlock, And Sorcerer In DND?

Wizard

A wizard achieves magical power through careful study. They might attend a formal school or learn independently but arrive at a series of formulae that produce magical effects when used.

In the forgotten realms, this is done by directly accessing the Weave, the magical underlayer of reality, and distorting it to create a specific effect. Since the wizard chooses how to direct their studies, they can choose to specialize in a specific school of magic.

Sorcerers

Sorcerers are born with inherent magical power. A sorcerer can often trace their ancestry back to a dragon, fey or other magical creature. This gives them a direct and intuitive channel to access the weave, but they’ll have a stronger affinity for the magic derived from their ancestors.

Warlocks

Warlocks barter for their power, rather than fully owning it. Like sorcerers, they gain their power from an external source, but instead of inheriting it, they strike a deal (sometimes unwillingly) with greater powers known as ‘patrons’ who grant them magical abilities.

Warlocks can be thought of as somewhere in between the wizard and sorcerer. Some are wizards who cut corners on having to do all the book learning, and others are more sorcerous but didn’t luck into a magical birthright.

Wizards are the only ‘prepared casters‘ of the trio. Since their magic is derived from their studies, they can spend time studying to learn new spells without leveling up and can change which spells they have ready on hand.

A wizard expecting to fight trolls might purchase scrolls containing fire spells and transcribe them into their spellbook to learn them.

When the wizard is not able to plan for the situation, they are at a disadvantage.

Sorcerers invert the wizard formula as ‘spontaneous casters‘. All the magic they learn they have access to at a moment’s notice but they cannot learn new spells easily.

They compensate for this limited toolkit with metamagic. Metamagics are sorcerer techniques that modify an existing spell for a stronger or different effect.

A sorcerer might use the twin spell metamagic to split a ray of frost in two, striking two targets when the spell normally hits once.

The sorcerer won’t be able to adjust their available spells to target an enemy’s weaknesses.

Warlocks learn even fewer spells than sorcerers and have fewer spell slots as well. However, what few spells they have are always cast at maximum power and they regain all spent spell slots after a short rest. This makes them generally better at short bursts of combat rather than extended dungeon dives.

To make up for the lack of spells, warlocks have arguably the best ranged cantrip in the game: Eldritch Blast. This spell makes warlocks reliable ranged damage dealers even after exhausting their spell slots.

A warlock regains all their spells by taking a short rest after ending combat with a powerful Fireball.

Prolonged combat reduces a warlock’s potency, forcing them to resort to Eldritch Blast.

Invocation

Invocations are modular abilities that customize how the warlock functions in and out of combat. Popular combat invocations empower the warlock’s Eldritch Blast cantrip, which can be cast endlessly without consuming spell slots.

Out-of-combat invocations give the warlock access to new abilities, such as changing their face or reading any language.

Pacts

Pacts are a larger singular choice akin to a second subclass after their patron. The warlock might specialize in using magically augmented weapons, performing longer ritual spells, or placing magical talismans on their allies to share their magic.

Great Old Ones Warlock

A warlock of the Great Old Ones might carefully steal magic from an unaware patron: eldritch deities are too vast to notice a warlock stealing powers the way an insect might siphon off a droplet of a person’s blood. These warlocks might grow very concerned if their patron ever decides to directly observe or interact with them.

Archfey Warlock

A warlock of the Archfey might be caught up in some opaque fey transaction, with convoluted rules and harsh penalties for breaking them. It’s possible they managed to outwit a magical entity and earned free power but they might also be deeply in debt for the magic they received. Mythologies vary but generally agree that it is very dangerous to owe any debt to the feyfolk. It’s also possible the patron took an interest in the warlock and gave them powers for the sake of entertainment, or the warlock somehow lucked into the Archfey’s gratitude.

Fiends Warlock

Fiend patrons often have similar transactional rules as Archfey patrons but are usually more defined by their contractual obligations. Fiends are also usually more transparent about their desire to acquire ever more power and the warlock’s role in achieving that end, often via destruction, corruption, or enslavement.

Paragon or Agent Warlock

Warlocks might also be paragons or unknowing agents of a cause that aligns with the interests of their patron. A celestial patron might bestow power onto their champion the same way a cleric receives power from a deity.

Aberrant Sorcerer

An Aberrant sorcerer has acquired unnatural psionic powers somehow, either by contact with beings from the Astral Plane, the Far Realm, or some other psionic entity. The result is magical powers focused on the mind, such as telekinesis, telepathy, and precognition.

Clockwork Sorcerer

Having seen the inner workings of the universe, a Clockwork sorcerer is embued with the magical power of Mechanus. This gives them great power over time, physics, and the fundamental rules of nature.

Wild Magic Sorcerer

A Wild Magic sorcerer is blessed (or perhaps cursed) with immense magical potential. They could have been born on a magical leyline, been exposed to a freak magical accident, or be a dead god waiting to be reincarnated. Whatever the cause, this sorcerer subclass struggles to contain its incredible power.

Draconic Sorcerer

Somewhere in the Draconic sorcerer’s lineage is a dragon—a being of such immense magical power that they cannot help but pass it on to future generations. It’s also possible to acquire a dragon’s power as a gift, or stealthily take it from them, but most often it’s a dragon that’s not going to let a little thing like genetic incompatibility keep them from having a good time.

Transmutation Specialist

A Transmutation specialist might have a specific project they wish to achieve through magic, whether creating a philosopher’s stone to turn lead into gold or magically shaping building materials to construct architecture not possible by normal engineering techniques.

Evocation Wizard

An Evocation wizard specializes in destructive magic, whether that be an elemental blast, a puddle of acid, or raw destructive power. This might translate to viewing magic as a dueling art, a means of conquest, or just liking fireworks shows.

Abjurer Wizard

An Abjurer specializes in defensive magic. The spells they cast redirect, reflect, or redistribute physical and magical power to ensure the safety of themselves and their teammates. Abjurers also learn to banish otherworldly entities and learn to travel great distances via portals.

Diviner Wizard

Diviners look into the mists of time to determine the fate of all things. They specialize in portents, clairvoyance, astral projection, and seeing what is typically invisible. Their knowledge of potential futures allows Diviners to influence events to achieve desired outcomes.

Illusionist Wizard

Illusionists conceal, deceive, and misdirect the senses of others. Sometimes the illusions conjured by wizards of this subclass can seem so real that they might as well be.

Necromancer’s Aspiration

A Necromancer might aspire to become a lich, an immortal undead wizard who sustains their existence by feeding on souls. They might also want to raise an undead army to conquer the continent. It’s the kind of evil goal you don’t mention aloud, but it’s nice to have something to look forward to.