Magic · Abjuration

Prismatic Wall

Prismatic Wall creates seven stacked layers of lethal coloured magic. The modern wall is a 9th-level spell with fixed dimensions and Dexterity-based layer saves; PF1e and D&D 3.5e use the older 8th-level scalable wall with separate spell counters for each colour.

5.5e / 2024	Bard 9, Wizard 9 · 12d6 elemental layers
5e / 2014	Wizard 9 · 10d6 elemental layers
Pathfinder 1e	Sorcerer/Wizard 8 · scalable wall · legacy poison subsystem
D&D 3.5e	Sorcerer/Wizard 8 · scalable wall · classic save-or-die green layer

Rules

Prismatic Wall by Edition

5.5e / 2024 5e / 2014 Pathfinder 1e D&D 3.5e

Prismatic Wall — 5.5e / 2024

Level	9th-level Abjuration
Classes	Bard, Wizard
Casting Time	Action
Range	60 feet
Components	V, S
Duration	10 minutes
Shape	Wall up to 90 ft. long, 30 ft. high and 1 inch thick, or globe up to 30 ft. diameter

If the wall appears in an occupied space, the spell ends without effect. It sheds Bright Light for 100 feet and Dim Light for another 100 feet. You and creatures you designate when casting can pass through safely. Other creatures that can see it and move within 20 feet, or start a turn there, make a Constitution save or become Blinded for 1 minute.

Layer	Failed save	Additional effect / removal
Red	12d6 Fire	Blocks nonmagical ranged attacks; destroyed by at least 25 Cold damage.
Orange	12d6 Acid	Blocks magical ranged attacks; destroyed by a strong wind such as Gust of Wind.
Yellow	12d6 Lightning	Destroyed by at least 60 Force damage.
Green	12d6 Poison	Destroyed by Passwall or an equal-or-higher-level spell that opens a portal in a solid surface.
Blue	12d6 Cold	Destroyed by at least 25 Fire damage.
Indigo	Restrained; repeated Constitution saves can end the effect or cause Petrification	Spells cannot be cast through it; destroyed by Bright Light from Daylight.
Violet	Blinded, then Wisdom save or transported to another plane	Destroyed by Dispel Magic.

Each layer is resolved separately with a Dexterity saving throw when a creature reaches into or passes through the wall. The wall has AC 10 and is destroyed one layer at a time from red to violet. Antimagic Field has no effect on it.

Prismatic Wall — 5e / 2014

Level	9th-level Abjuration
Classes	Wizard
Casting Time	1 action
Range	60 feet
Components	V, S
Duration	10 minutes
Shape	Wall up to 90 ft. long, 30 ft. high and 1 inch thick, or sphere up to 30 ft. diameter

The overall structure is the same as 2024: designated creatures can ignore the wall, nearby creatures risk 1 minute of blindness, and a creature passing through resolves the seven layers separately.

Layer	Failed save	Additional effect / removal
Red	10d6 Fire	Blocks nonmagical ranged attacks; destroyed by at least 25 Cold damage.
Orange	10d6 Acid	Blocks magical ranged attacks; destroyed by a strong wind.
Yellow	10d6 Lightning	Destroyed by at least 60 Force damage.
Green	10d6 Poison	Destroyed by Passwall or equivalent portal-opening magic.
Blue	10d6 Cold	Destroyed by at least 25 Fire damage.
Indigo	Restrained; repeated Constitution saves can end the effect or permanently Petrify	Spells cannot be cast through it; destroyed by Daylight or similar equal-or-higher-level light.
Violet	Blinded, then Wisdom save or transported to another plane	Destroyed by Dispel Magic or similar equal-or-higher-level magic that ends spells.

2014 access: the base spell is Wizard-only. Bard access belongs to the 2024 version.

Prismatic Wall — Pathfinder 1e

School	Abjuration
Level	Sorcerer/Wizard 8
Casting Time	1 standard action
Range	Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Components	V, S
Effect	Wall 4 ft./level wide, 2 ft./level high
Duration	10 minutes/level (D)
Saving Throw / SR	See text / see text

You can pass through and remain near your own wall safely. Other creatures with fewer than 8 Hit Dice within 20 feet are blinded for 2d4 rounds if they look at it. Spell Resistance is checked separately against each colour.

Layer	Effect	Negated by
Red	Blocks nonmagical ranged weapons; 20 Fire damage, Reflex half.	Cone of Cold
Orange	Blocks magical ranged weapons; 40 Acid damage, Reflex half.	Gust of Wind
Yellow	Blocks poisons, gases and petrification; 80 Electricity damage, Reflex half.	Disintegrate
Green	Blocks breath weapons; poison with death as its initial effect, then Constitution damage on later rounds until cured by two consecutive Fortitude saves.	Passwall
Blue	Blocks divination and mental attacks; turned to stone, Fortitude negates.	Magic Missile
Indigo	Stops all spells; Will save or become insane.	Daylight
Violet	Destroys objects and effects; creatures are sent to another plane, Will negates.	Dispel Magic or greater dispelling magic

The colours must be removed in order. A rod of cancellation or mage’s disjunction can destroy the whole wall. Antimagic Field does not penetrate it, and ordinary dispelling cannot affect the wall until the earlier colours are gone. The wall can be made permanent with Permanency.

Prismatic Wall — D&D 3.5e

School	Abjuration
Level	Sorcerer/Wizard 8
Casting Time	1 standard action
Range	Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Components	V, S
Effect	Wall 4 ft./level wide, 2 ft./level high
Duration	10 minutes/level (D)
Saving Throw / SR	See text / see text

The general legacy wall procedure is the same as Pathfinder 1e: creatures with fewer than 8 HD can be blinded by looking at the wall, the colours are removed in order, and Spell Resistance is checked against each colour separately.

Layer	Effect	Negated by
Red	Blocks nonmagical ranged weapons; 20 Fire damage, Reflex half.	Cone of Cold
Orange	Blocks magical ranged weapons; 40 Acid damage, Reflex half.	Gust of Wind
Yellow	Blocks poisons, gases and petrification; 80 Electricity damage, Reflex half.	Disintegrate
Green	Blocks breath weapons; Fortitude partial—failure kills, success reduces the result to 1d6 Constitution damage.	Passwall
Blue	Blocks divination and mental attacks; turned to stone, Fortitude negates.	Magic Missile
Indigo	Stops all spells; Will save or become insane.	Daylight
Violet	Destroys objects and effects; creatures are sent to another plane, Will negates.	Dispel Magic

A rod of cancellation or mage’s disjunction destroys the wall. Antimagic Field does not penetrate it. Dispel Magic cannot remove the wall until the preceding layers have been destroyed. The wall can be made permanent with Permanency.

Edition Changes

What Changed?

2024 adds Bard access; 2014 is Wizard-only.
2024 increases the first five elemental layers from 10d6 to 12d6.
Modern D&D uses a fixed 90-by-30-foot wall or 30-foot globe/sphere; PF1e and 3.5e scale wall dimensions by caster level.
Modern D&D replaces the legacy low-HD automatic blindness with a Constitution saving throw for creatures that approach the wall.
PF1e and 3.5e diverge on the green layer: Pathfinder uses its poison subsystem, while 3.5e uses a Fortitude partial save-or-die result.

Play

Using Prismatic Wall

The spell is strongest when it divides a battlefield or seals a route that enemies must cross. Because every layer is resolved separately, forcing movement through the wall can be devastating.

Do not treat the colours as interchangeable. In modern D&D they use individual Dexterity saves and fixed damage values; in PF1e/3.5e they combine damage, special barriers, saving throws, Spell Resistance and named counterspells.

Rules lock: do not carry 2024 Bard access or 12d6 layers into 2014, and do not replace the legacy green poison effects with the modern 10d6/12d6 Poison-damage layer.

Related Magic

Related Spells

Prismatic Spray — the lower-level cone of random prismatic rays.
Prismatic Sphere — the legacy spherical relative of the wall.
Passwall — a named counter to the green layer.
Antimagic Field — notably does not suppress the wall.
Dispel Magic — interacts primarily with the violet layer in modern D&D.
Bard Spells — includes Prismatic Wall in 2024.
Sorcerer & Wizard Spells — legacy and modern arcane access.

Sources & Licensing

Rules Sources

The 2024 and 2014 panels follow their respective public D&D rules entries. Pathfinder 1e and D&D 3.5e use their open rules versions. Their separate colour tables are preserved because damage values, access, poison mechanics and removal procedures differ by edition.