Minor Illusion Spell — 2024 & 2014 Rules
Minor Illusion creates a brief sound or a small image without requiring a spell slot.
At a Glance
| 2024 | Illusion cantrip — Bard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard |
|---|---|
| 2014 | Illusion cantrip — Bard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard |
| PF1e / 3.5e | No core spell of this exact name; use edition-native illusion spells instead. |
Choose Your Edition
Minor Illusion — 5.5e / 2024
| School | Illusion cantrip |
|---|---|
| Casting Time | Action |
| Range | 30 feet |
| Components | S, M (a bit of fleece) |
| Duration | 1 minute |
Create either a sound or the image of an object within range. An image fits inside a 5-foot Cube and cannot produce sound, light, smell, or other sensory effects. Physical interaction reveals it as an illusion.
A creature can take the Study action to examine the illusion and identify it with a successful Intelligence (Investigation) check against your spell save DC.
Minor Illusion — 5e / 2014
| School | Illusion cantrip |
|---|---|
| Casting Time | 1 action |
| Range | 30 feet |
| Components | S, M (a bit of fleece) |
| Duration | 1 minute |
The same sound-or-image structure applies. A creature uses its action to examine the illusion with Intelligence (Investigation) against your spell save DC.
The 2014 text also lets you dismiss the illusion as an action; casting the spell again ends the previous illusion.
What Changed?
The core spell is almost unchanged. The main rules-language update is the 2024 Study action replacing the older generic action-to-investigate wording.