Unleashing the Fury: Understanding the Maximum Potential of Divine Smite
The question of “What is the highest divine smite?” often resonates with Paladin players looking to maximize their damage output. The short answer is: The highest single instance of Divine Smite damage, when hitting a fiend or undead creature with a critical hit, is 12d8 radiant damage. However, the mechanics behind achieving this maximum are layered and nuanced, requiring careful understanding of the Paladin’s abilities. Let’s delve into the specifics to fully grasp the potential of this potent ability.
Deciphering Divine Smite Mechanics
Divine Smite is a core Paladin ability that allows you to channel radiant energy into your weapon attacks. It’s not a spell itself, but it is fueled by your spell slots. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can choose to expend a spell slot, dealing additional radiant damage to your target.
Here’s a breakdown of the damage:
- Base Damage: The base additional damage is 2d8 radiant for a 1st-level spell slot.
- Scaling: The damage increases by 1d8 for each spell level above 1st.
- Maximum Dice: The maximum damage you can achieve using this scaling is 5d8 radiant damage, achievable with a 4th-level spell slot or higher. Using a higher level spell slot does not increase the dice used in the smite.
- Undead/Fiends: If the target is an undead or a fiend, the damage increases by an additional 1d8, to a maximum of 6d8 radiant damage.
- Critical Hits: If the attack is a critical hit, all of the rolled damage dice are doubled.
Thus, the process to get the highest damage from a Divine Smite involves using a 4th-level spell slot (or higher), hitting a critical against an undead or fiend enemy. This culminates in rolling the 6d8 radiant damage for the attack, then doubling this total due to the crit, to a final roll of 12d8 radiant damage.
Maximizing Your Divine Smite
While understanding the mechanics is crucial, maximizing your Divine Smite involves more than just knowing the numbers. Here are some key strategies to consider:
- Prioritize Critical Hits: Abilities or spells that grant advantage on attack rolls dramatically increase your chances of landing a critical hit.
- Focus Fire: Prioritize using Divine Smite on powerful enemies, especially those vulnerable to radiant damage.
- Utilize Extra Attack: The Extra Attack feature, which allows you to attack multiple times per turn, significantly increases opportunities to expend a spell slot on a divine smite.
- Target Undead and Fiends: Recognize and target these creature types whenever possible to benefit from the bonus damage.
- Strategic Spell Slot Usage: Carefully manage your spell slots to ensure you have enough available for crucial situations.
Divine Smite vs. Smite Spells
It’s important to differentiate Divine Smite from Smite spells like Searing Smite or Thunderous Smite. Divine Smite is an instantaneous effect that is applied after successfully hitting your target, while Smite spells usually have an initial casting, and last a certain time and require concentration. Critically, you can stack Divine Smite with Smite Spells, allowing for a single attack to be devastatingly powerful.
Improved Divine Smite, gained later, adds an additional d8 of radiant damage to every hit you make. It does not prevent using a regular Divine Smite on the same hit, and stacks with the extra dice from Divine Smite.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are some frequently asked questions about Divine Smite, providing further insight into its mechanics and use:
1. What is the base damage of a Divine Smite?
The base damage of a Divine Smite using a 1st-level spell slot is 2d8 radiant damage.
2. How does the damage scale with higher spell slots?
For each spell level higher than 1st, the damage increases by 1d8 radiant damage, to a maximum of 5d8.
3. Can you use Divine Smite with a ranged attack?
No. Divine Smite requires a melee weapon attack.
4. Does Charisma affect the damage of Divine Smite?
No, Charisma does not increase the damage of Divine Smite. Charisma does impact the amount of spells you can prepare, the difficulty class for your spells, and other skills.
5. Can you use Divine Smite more than once per turn?
Yes. You can use Divine Smite every time you hit with a melee weapon attack, as long as you have available spell slots.
6. Is Divine Smite a spell?
No. Divine Smite is not a spell, although it is fueled by spell slots. This means it is not countered by an antimagic field.
7. Does Divine Smite work against creatures in an Antimagic Field?
No. Since Divine Smite expends spell slots and has magical origins, it is suppressed within an Antimagic Field. However, Improved Divine Smite would still work within an Antimagic Field.
8. Can Divine Smite be countered?
No, Divine Smite cannot be countered. It is not a spell according to the rules.
9. Does Divine Smite do extra damage to undead?
Yes, Divine Smite deals an additional 1d8 radiant damage when the target is an undead or a fiend.
10. Can you combine Divine Smite with other Smite spells?
Yes. You can combine Divine Smite with Smite Spells such as Branding Smite.
11. Does Divine Smite break concentration?
No, Divine Smite does not break concentration.
12. Can you use Divine Smite with a thrown weapon?
No. Divine Smite requires a melee weapon attack. Throwing a weapon constitutes a ranged weapon attack. A weapon with the thrown property, used in melee, is usable for Divine Smite.
13. How does a critical hit affect Divine Smite?
On a critical hit, all of the dice rolled for Divine Smite damage are doubled.
14. Does Rage prevent Divine Smite?
No, since Divine Smite is not a spell, Rage does not prevent the use of Divine Smite.
15. Can you use Divine Smite with Booming Blade?
Yes, since Booming Blade requires a melee weapon attack as part of the spell, you can also use Divine Smite on that same attack.
Conclusion
Divine Smite is a powerful tool in a Paladin’s arsenal, capable of delivering massive amounts of radiant damage. Understanding its scaling, limitations, and interactions with other abilities is crucial for maximizing its potential. While the highest potential damage from a single Divine Smite is 12d8 against a fiend or undead on a critical hit, strategic usage of this ability, coupled with other combat techniques, can turn the tide of any battle. By mastering Divine Smite, you can truly unleash the fury of your oath upon your foes.