The Spell Fog Cloud Might Not Have the Combat Uses You Think It Has (A D&D 5e Rant)

The spell Fog Cloud allows you to heavily obscure an area, effectively rendering most creatures unable to see. When you first read the spell, you might think, “Oh that’s cool, that can let our party attack the enemy while they can’t see us.” There was actually an example of this usage in one episode of Critical Role. Keyleth cast the spell in a tavern, and (if I recall correctly) Vax made an attack with advantage and dealt sneak attack damage.

Now, the thing we don’t always realise when we first read the spell’s description is that the cloud heavily obscures the area for everyone, including the party that cast it. While it may be true that attacking an enemy that can’t see you allows you to roll the attack with advantage, you also have to consider that you don’t see your target, and that means you roll your attack with disadvantage. Having both advantage and disadvantage, they cancel each other out, and you roll your attack normally. Does that make the spell Fog Cloud completely useless? Not at all. Here’s where Fog Cloud can shine in combat.

The likeliest application of the spell is to take away an enemy’s edge over you. Say that you’re facing a pack of wolves. Their pack tactics allow them to attack with advantage if they gang up on a player. Casting Fog Cloud renders their feature useless, since any form of disadvantage takes away all advantages (and vice versa). So if you get overwhelmed by any creature that can easily get advantage on you, Fog Cloud can cancel that advantage.

Similarly, if your opponents force you to attack them with disadvantage (perhaps you’re fighting Quicklings), then casting Fog Cloud allows your party to attack them normally.

In other words, Fog Cloud can be nifty in leveling the playing field. One caveat is that if you have a rogue in your party, then you might be taking away their ability to sneak attack (because they can no longer have advantage on their target). Technically speaking, they can still sneak attack if they have an ally next to their target, because the rules explicitly say that when you have both advantage and disadvantage, you are considered to have neither, and if you don’t have disadvantage, then you can still qualify for a tag-team sneak attack.

The fun doesn’t stop there though. If your party is facing a spellcaster, Fog Cloud might cut off most of their repertoire, since most spells require the spellcaster to see their target in order to cast the spell. No more Hold Person, Disintegrate or Power Word: Kill. That’s a very powerful counter for a level one spell! (Keep in mind though that this applies to your party’s spellcasters too.)

Finally, if your party is in a bind, Fog Cloud can help you cut a hasty retreat. The rules for attacks of opportunity require a creature to see their target in order to get a chance to attack them while they’re moving out of reach. If they can’t see you, they can’t attack you on your turn. No need to disengage.

The more I think about it, the more I like Fog Cloud. It’s a level one spell that can still find some usefulness in the later levels. Now I’ve outlined what it can do in combat, but you can get some use out of it in other contexts, like getting into places without being seen.

4 January 2023