Booming Blade - What am I missing ?

[BrotherG]

It kind of sucks, I think : it's supposed to deal damages when the ennemy moves. Well if you are engaged in the melee the ennemy doesn't just move and eat an opportunity attack. So booming blade does not actually trigger often, if ever. Am I missing something ?

[Mike Garrison]

Nope. It's a cantrip. It's not supposed to be all-powerful.

The original concept for it was that it sort of served as a way for certain spellcasters to get a similar effect as extra attack. In the tabletop version of the spell, it replaces your attack action instead of just being an add-on. But at higher levels (about where melee characters get extra attacks), it starts doing more damage. So it is a way for spellcaster characters to try to sort of keep up with martials if they want to go more melee-focused.

[Duilf]

According to the wiki It becomes very OP https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Booming_Blade even before counting the movement damage it grows from a weapon hit to a weapon hit + 2D8 thunder. Which if the weapon is 1D8 amounts to the same as Shocking Grasp, but if the weapon is greater then 1D8 is already superior.

Also the movement damage is more practical then you might think. Many caster classes have a way to quickly escape combat, and if they don't one can be acquired numerous ways. So the person with booming blade stands alone, gets engaged solo by a melee opponent, uses Booming Blade, and disengages far enough that the opponent has to move.

[Balekai]

Originally posted by BrotherG:

It kind of sucks, I think : it's supposed to deal damages when the ennemy moves. Well if you are engaged in the melee the ennemy doesn't just move and eat an opportunity attack. So booming blade does not actually trigger often, if ever. Am I missing something ?

These are the benefits:

- It allows your melee attack to benefit from cantrip mechanics and bonuses (like Potent Robe extra damage), and as a cantrip, uniquely uses your melee attack to hit (instead of spell attack) and do extra damage (with the melee weapon itself).

- At level 5, it upgrades to do a flat 1d8 thunder damage vs target in addition to move damage. Then 2d8 thunder damage at level 11. This new added damage does not require the target to move, making it a perfect means to provoke the bonuses of Reverberation gear to do tons of extra damage/debuffing. Note Reverberation gear and mechanics here: https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Reverberation_(Condition)

[Hobocop]

Booming Blade and Shove, Cunning Action, or another low-cost method to get out of melee and force them to move to reengage is basically free damage.

[Balekai]

Oh and in addition to Reverberation gear and Potent Robe, Booming Blade should benefit from Necklace of Elemental Augmentation:

Elemental Augmentation
When one of your cantrips deals Acid, Cold, Fire, Lightning, or Thunder damage, add your Spellcasting Modifier to the damage dealt.

So CHA bonus to damage from both Potent Robe and the above amulet.

One can also use Gish equipment in game too more easily, since Booming Blade can be used as an Extra Attack (with say EK or Warlock), thus being able to go back and forth between normal melee attack and cantrip attack to get Gish bonuses efficiently/quickly.

[BrotherG]

Understood. Seems like it's not that bad and really interesting at level 5, even for hexblades.

[daveyfunk]

Originally posted by BrotherG:

It kind of sucks, I think : it's supposed to deal damages when the ennemy moves. Well if you are engaged in the melee the ennemy doesn't just move and eat an opportunity attack. So booming blade does not actually trigger often, if ever. Am I missing something ?

To add to the points above, Booming Blade also triggers Gloves of the Battlemage (which now works) and so also builds arcane acuity