Banishing Smite 5e: Mechanics and Guide To Using the Spell

Spell Description:

The next time you hit a creature with a weapon attack before this spell ends, your weapon crackles with force, and the attack deals an extra 5d10 force damage to the target.

Additionally, if this attack reduces the target to 50 hit points or fewer, you banish it. If the target is native to a different plane of existence than the one you’re on, the target disappears, returning to its home plane.

If the target is native to the plane you’re on, the creature vanishes into a harmless demiplane. While there, the target is incapacitated.

It remains there until the spell ends, at which point the target reappears in the space it left or in the nearest unoccupied space if that space is occupied.

	5th level	7th level	8th level	9th level
Damage Dice	5d10	X	X	X
Minimum Damage	5	X	X	X
Average Damage	25.5	X	X	X
Maximum Damage	50	X	X	X

What Is Banishing Smite?

Banishing Smite is a 5th-level Abjuration spell. It costs 1 bonus action to cast and empowers the next melee weapon attack the caster makes, making the weapon attack deal 5d10 force damage on hit.

If the Smite drops the enemy to 50HP or below, the target is banished to another plane of existence.

Who Can Cast Banishing Smite?

Paladins are the only base class with Banishing Smite on their spell list and will get access to their first 5th-level spells at level 17.

Hexblade Warlocks have Banishing Smite on their expanded spell list and can begin to cast this spell at 9th level.

Battle Smith Artificers can cast Banishing Smite but will have to wait until 17th level like Paladins. Bards can cast Banishing Smite starting at 10th level with their Magical Secrets class feature.

When and Where Should I Cast Banishing Smite?

Banishing Smite is a good way to take an enemy out of a fight when the party has multiple stronger enemies to deal with. The real downside of Banishing Smite is that the 50HP requirement means that you will be dropping the enemy quite low already.

The other thing is that the Paladin class is really going to want to save those spell slots for Divine Smite.

However, Banishing Smite does have the bonus of being able to deal massive burst damage in combination with Divine Smite. Banishing Smite empowers the next attack and can be used after attacking.

The player will not be able to use Divine Smite on that turn, but the next turn they will be able to Divine Smite when they land a hit as well as Banishing Smite’s empowered strike activating, as the resolution of the empowered strike is not a spell cast.

Why Should I Take Banishing Smite?

Banishing Smite’s control element is powerful. Removing a creature from the battlefield for 1 minute is incredibly strong.

Given that they are primary casters, Bards and Hexblade Warlocks may have a better experience using Banishing Smite, but Paladins will want to stack their spell list with damage; there’s no reason not to have Banishing Smite, since you can just choose not to use it.

Common Questions About Banishing Smite