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Reader beware: This article may be trapped! Today, we’re talking about a 3rd-level abjuration spell that can pack a surprising punch, glyph of warding. If you’re a player looking for ways to protect your stuff or a Dungeon Master researching creative ways to booby trap your dungeons, glyph of warding can be a versatile addition to your arsenal.
This is a pretty expansive spell, but there quite a few limitations as well, so let’s take a deep dive:
How Does Glyph of Warding Work?
Sometimes you really want to cast a spell on someone, but they don’t have the decency to be around when the urge strikes. Luckily, glyph of warding allows you to store a magical effect in a glyph that you can leave behind for them, or some random snooping soul to find. Like preparing a spell to use as a reaction in combat or storing a spell into a magic item, glyph of warding allows you to prep either a spell or an explosive set of runes and store them into a glyph to activate later based on a trigger of your choice.
There are a few limitations to the spell, primarily the cost of using it. Glyph of warding requires incense and powdered diamond worth at least 200 gp, which are consumed by the spell. There’s also the hour-long casting time. Based on these factors, this spell is not something you’ll likely be casting regularly. But if you have the time to prep, glyph of warding can grant a substantial strategic advantage.
There are two main types of glyphs you can inscribe with a glyph of warding: explosive runes or a spell glyph. The explosive runes are pretty cut and dry. When triggered, a 20-foot-radius sphere erupts centered on the glyph and inflicts 5d8 of your choice of acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder damage. A creature that succeeds in a Dexterity saving throw against the original spellcaster’s spell save DC takes half the damage. We’ll talk more about the spell glyph option below.
Before we move on, though, let’s talk about what you can cast glyph of warding on. When casting the spell, you inscribe the glyph on a surface. For example, a spot on the floor, a desk, bookshelf, etc., or within an object that can be closed, like that Tupperware of leftovers that someone always steals from your work fridge. The glyph can be up to 10 feet in diameter, and the object it is inscribed on cannot be moved more than 10 feet from where you initially cast it, or else the spell is broken and does not trigger. So while it might be tempting to hide a glyphed item in someone’s possessions to strike at them later, it would more than likely just burn some money, casting time, and a 3rd-level or higher spell slot.
What Spells Can You Cast With Glyph of Warding?
Let’s talk more about the spell glyph option and what you can do with it. First off, it’s important to note that storing a spell in your glyph of warding requires a 3rd-level spell slot for the glyph and a spell slot for whatever spell you want to trigger later. When choosing the spell to cast, keep in mind that there are two types of spell glyphs you can create, ones that target a single creature and ones that target a specific area. The spell will either target whoever triggers it, if it’s a targeted spell, or create an area of effect centered on the glyph. The spell must come from the caster’s prepared spell list and be equal to or lower than the spell level that glyph of warding was cast. You can also store a concentration spell in the spell glyph, and the spell will last for the entirety of its duration. Spells that target “self” cannot be stored in a spell glyph because those spells can only be cast on the spellcaster.
For a quick reference, here is a table of some popular spells and whether or not they can be stored in a glyph of warding:
Dungeon Master Uses for Glyph of Warding
As a DM, there are plenty of fun glyph of warding ideas to unleash upon your players. If used properly, glyph of warding can occupy that same space of dread in your players’ minds as a mimic. After players trigger a couple glyphs, it will make them start to doubt the safety of some of the most mundane objects in a dungeon. Go ahead, check for traps on that safe. There’s no way to tell that there’s a glyph of warding inscribed on the inside back wall, with a potent set of explosive runes that trigger when the safe is opened. Are you sure you want to grab that loot without inspecting it first? Be our guest. Oh, you’re going to buff yourselves up before entering this dungeon? Meet this row of dispel magic-infused glyphs you just walked over.
But there’s also storytelling and mystery-solving potential in the glyph of warding. It has a pretty hefty material cost, which doesn’t have to be exclusively for the player characters. If you’ve got a wizard or cleric who needs to shop around for material components, maybe they’re having a tough time finding incense and diamond powder in a particular town. Maybe shopkeepers mention that someone has bought up most of the local supply. This detail dropped in the prep stage could make the party wonder if someone has a few tricks up their sleeve.
Who Can Cast Glyph of Warding?
Why We Love This Spell
We love a spell that feels like it’s giving a nod to the preppers among us. So many spells are about instant returns, but glyph of warding is for those who love to sit back and tap their fingers together while a plan comes to fruition.
We also love a spell that opens the door for so many creative uses. Suppose you’re deep in a dungeon and preparing to face off against a formidable enemy, for example. A cleric could set up a “medical tent” glyph that activates a powerful healing spell if a particularly hurt party member activates it. Or, they could prepare a casting of haste that will not be bound to their concentration. This might seem like a waste of resources to some, but it could be a critical strategic move if the party’s healers are busy with the giant monster thing.
FAQ: Glyph of Warding
Can you cast glyph of warding on a person?
According to the text of the spell, glyph of warding has to be inscribed on a surface or object, not a creature. For example, you could inscribe a glyph onto an article of clothing or an item such as a sword or shield. However, if someone is wearing or carrying those items, they’d still be limited to the 10 feet of range before the spell is disabled. In this case, it would be best used to boost the defenses of a patient sentry who never takes restroom breaks. A more practical use might be hiding it on a piece of weaponry in an armory so that a grabby adventurer may end up surprised.
Can you cast a glyph of warding on or inside a bag of holding?
The description of glyph of warding does not indicate damage is done to the surface on which the glyph is drawn. This means you could cast the spell glyph on the outside of the bag of holding without damaging the bag. However, you would be unable to move the bag more than 10 feet without disabling the spell glyph.
Inside the bag is a gray area that will be up to your DM’s discretion as to whether internal items are considered “moved” when the bag is moved more than 10 feet. If the DM allows it, and if the spell is cast outside the bag and the object is placed inside it, crossing the extradimensional threshold at the bag’s opening could be ruled as being more than 10 feet and disable the glyph already. If not, when the object is removed from the bag, it would be more than 10 feet from where the rune spell was cast and disabled.
If the DM considers the objects inside the bag of holding to be stationary regardless of whether the bag is moved, you could possibly cast a glyph of warding inside the bag of holding as a trap for a future owner. Since the spell’s casting takes a full hour, and a bag of holding only contains enough oxygen for a single creature to breathe for 10 minutes, perhaps there is a grisly dungeon somewhere filled with bags containing the remains of asphyxiated mages alongside inert glyphs.
With DM discretion, a sorcerer who can hold their breath for longer than an hour could cast a glyph of warding inside a bag of holding. At this point, though, we’re going beyond the intents and purposes of the spell as written.
Can you cast concentration spells on a glyph of warding?
Yes. And when triggered, the spell won’t require the spellcaster’s concentration and it will automatically last for its entire duration.
How do you detect and disarm a glyph of warding?
A successful Intelligence (Investigation) check against the original caster’s spell save DC will detect the nearly invisible glyph. If the glyph is on a moveable object, it may be disarmed by moving it more than 10 feet from where it was cast. Since dispel magic allows you to target objects or magical effects, it could also be used to disable a glyph of warding.
How does counterspell interact with a glyph of warding?
You cannot use your reaction to counterspell a spell that activated when a glyph of warding is triggered. This is because counterspell specifies that you must see the creature casting the spell within 60 feet. Similarly, storing a counterspell in a glyph of warding wouldn’t work for the same reason. The spell glyph would not be able to see the nearby caster preparing the spell in order to counter it.
Can you cast glyph of warding with warlock pact spell slots?
Glyph of warding is not on the warlock spell list. However, a multiclass warlock with access to another class’s spell list could use their pact slots to cast it, provided their warlock level places their pact slots at 3rd-level spells or higher.
Can you use Metamagic on the spell cast on a glyph of warding?
No official rulings would disallow spending sorcery points to use Metamagic on a spell glyph. However, Metamagic would not allow you to break the restrictions of the spell glyph, such as the spell glyph’s range, area of effect, or ability to target only one creature. Most Metamagic effects would be negated by the nature and requirements of the spell glyph. However, it can work with Heightened Spell, Extended Spell, or the optional Transmuted Spell from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything.
Why is glyph of warding so expensive?
Glyph of warding is part of a family of spells like hallow and forbiddance that create long-term protection for a location. It’s good to picture the physical process of casting the spell, of a mage infusing a glyph with the magical power that would be needed to hold a spell inside it indefinitely. You could cast glyph of warding and, if it hadn’t been activated, come back decades, even centuries later, to find the glyphs still intact and waiting for their triggers. The fuel for that kind of arcane battery takes a bit of juice.
Riley Silverman (@rileyjsilverman) is a contributing writer to D&D Beyond, Nerdist, and SYFY Wire. She DMs the Theros-set Dice Ex Machina for the Saving Throw Show, and has been a player on the Wizards of the Coast-sponsored The Broken Pact. Riley also played as Braga in the official tabletop adaptation of the Rat Queens comic for HyperRPG, and currently plays as The Doctor on the Doctor Who RPG podcast The Game of Rassilon. She currently lives in Los Angeles.
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