Dragonborn Evoker Wizard Build Guide

Levels 1-4

Your early game requires balancing your low 15 Intelligence with survival. Start with Mage Armor and Shield. The exact Evoker feature levels dictate your power spikes (level 3 first, then 9, 13, 17 for your major spell tier jumps and subclass abilities). At level 3, you gain Evocation Savant, halving the gold cost to scribe Shatter or Burning Hands. You also gain Potent Cantrip at level 3; make sure you take Toll the Dead or Acid Splash so enemies still take half damage on a successful save. At level 4, take the Fey Touched feat to bump your INT to 16 and grab Misty Step.

Levels 5-10

Level 5 brings 3rd-level spells, drastically improving your 3.9 melee DPR and 7.8 spell DPR. Learn Fireball immediately. At level 6, you unlock Sculpt Spells. This is the defining feature of the build: you can now cast Fireball into a crowded melee, choosing a number of allies equal to 1 + the spell's level (4 allies for a 3rd-level cast) to automatically succeed on their saves and take zero damage. At level 8, take an ASI for +2 Intelligence (18 total). At level 9, you unlock 5th-level spells like Cone of Cold. Level 10 grants Empowered Evocation, adding your +4 INT modifier to one damage roll of any wizard evocation spell. This applies to every dart of Magic Missile.

Levels 11-16

At level 11, your spell DPR climbs to 10.18. Level 12 brings another ASI; cap your Intelligence at 20 to maximize Empowered Evocation and your spell save DC. At level 13, you gain access to 7th-level spells like Delayed Blast Fireball. Level 14 introduces Overchannel. When you cast a wizard spell of 1st through 5th level that deals damage, you can maximize it. A 5th-level Cone of Cold now deals a guaranteed 60 damage, and you can safely catch your party in the blast using Sculpt Spells. At level 16, take Resilient (Constitution) to shore up your concentration checks.

Levels 17-20

Level 17 unlocks 9th-level spells. Meteor Swarm is an Evocation spell, meaning Empowered Evocation adds +5 damage to one of its rolls, and Sculpt Spells can protect 10 allies from the apocalyptic destruction. Use Draconic Flight to stay above the fray, alternating between Overchanneling 5th-level spells (taking the 2d12 necrotic damage sparingly) and using your Breath Weapon when you want to conserve spell slots.

Cantrips

Take Toll the Dead and Acid Splash. Because of Potent Cantrip at level 3, these saving-throw cantrips guarantee chip damage even when enemies succeed. Fire Bolt is a solid attack-roll alternative once Empowered Evocation comes online at level 10.

Level 1-2 Spells

Magic Missile is non-negotiable; at level 10, Empowered Evocation adds your INT modifier to the single damage roll shared by all darts. Shield and Absorb Elements keep your d6 hit die safe, stacking with your innate Dragonborn Damage Resistance. Shatter is your best early AoE to scribe cheaply using Evocation Savant.

Level 3-5 Spells

Fireball is your bread and butter, weaponized perfectly by Sculpt Spells at level 6. Wall of Fire provides incredible battlefield control, and Cone of Cold at 5th level is the absolute best spell to pair with your level 14 Overchannel feature, yielding a massive 60 guaranteed cold damage.

High-Level Spells

Chain Lightning at 6th level is an incredibly precise Evocation nuke. Sunburst at 8th level is a massive 60-foot radius Evocation spell that blinds enemies while Sculpt Spells keeps your party's vision intact. Finally, Meteor Swarm at 9th level is the ultimate endgame blaster tool.

Fey Touched

Take this at level 4. Starting with 15 Intelligence is rough, and this bumps it to a respectable 16. It also gives you Misty Step and Gift of Alacrity (or Bless), ensuring your squishy Dragonborn can escape grapples when Draconic Flight isn't enough.

Elemental Adept

Take this at level 8 or 12 if your campaign is heavily themed. Choose the element that matches your Draconic Ancestry and your favorite Evocation spells (like Fire for Fireball). Bypassing resistance ensures your Overchannel feature isn't wasted on a resistant fiend.

Resilient (Constitution)

Take this at level 12 or 16. Starting with 14 CON means you only have a +2 to concentration checks. When you are flying above the battlefield maintaining a Wall of Fire, you cannot afford to drop concentration from a stray arrow. This bumps your CON saves significantly.

Alert

Take this in late Tier 3 or Tier 4. Going first is critical for an Evoker. While Sculpt Spells lets you blast around allies safely, casting Meteor Swarm or Cone of Cold before the enemy can spread out maximizes your damage output.

Tier 1 (Levels 1-4)

Prioritize finding a Pearl of Power. At these early levels, regaining a 3rd-level spell slot means one extra Fireball per day. A Ruby of the War Mage is unnecessary since you don't use weapons, but basic spell scrolls are vital to leverage your Evocation Savant discount.

Tier 2 (Levels 5-10)

Seek out a Wand of the War Mage +1 to boost your spell attack rolls and ignore half cover. More importantly, beg your DM for an Amulet of Health. Bumping your CON to 19 radically fixes your fragile d6 hit die, making you tough enough to survive mid-range Breath Weapon engagements.

Tier 3 (Levels 11-16)

The Staff of Power is the holy grail for this build. It grants a +2 to AC, saving throws, and spell attacks, while offering free casts of Cone of Cold and Fireball that you can augment with Empowered Evocation. Pair this with a Robe of the Archmagi to push your save DC to impossible heights.

Tier 4 (Levels 17-20)

Acquire a Tome of Clear Thought to push your Intelligence to 22. This directly buffs Empowered Evocation, adding +6 damage to your Evocation spells. A Staff of the Magi provides ultimate magical dominance, allowing you to absorb incoming spells and retaliate with maximized Overchannel blasts.

As an Evoker Wizard, your role is the premier Blaster. You are not a subtle controller; your job is to reduce enemy hit points to zero as efficiently as possible. Because of your d6 hit die and 32 HP at level 5, you need allies who can hold the frontline and draw aggro while you position for optimal cones and spheres.

This build shines brightest when paired with highly aggressive melee classes like the Totem Warrior Barbarian or the Oath of Conquest Paladin. Normally, Wizards hesitate to cast Fireball when the Barbarian is surrounded. Thanks to Sculpt Spells, you actively want your Paladin to group enemies up, allowing you to drop catastrophic AoE damage directly on their heads with zero friendly fire.

You also pair excellently with a Twilight Domain Cleric. Their Twilight Sanctuary grants a constant stream of temporary hit points, which perfectly mitigates the d6 hit die squishiness and helps absorb the 2d12 necrotic backlash when you push your Overchannel feature past its first free use.

Fighter 2 Dip

Taking two levels of Fighter is a classic Wizard power play. Starting Fighter 1 gives you Constitution saving throw proficiency, medium armor, and shields, drastically increasing your AC. Fighter 2 grants Action Surge, allowing you to cast two leveled spells in a single turn. Dropping two Empowered Fireballs back-to-back will end most encounters immediately.

Artificer 1 Dip

A single level of Artificer at character creation is arguably the most optimal start. You gain medium armor, shields, and Constitution saves, but unlike Fighter, Artificer levels round up for multiclass spell slot progression. You don't delay your spell slot progression at all, making the wait for Overchannel at level 14 much more palatable.

• Sculpting Non-Evocation Spells: Sculpt Spells explicitly only works on Evocation spells. A common mistake is casting a Conjuration spell like Web or an Illusion like Hypnotic Pattern and expecting your party to automatically save. They won't.
• Killing Yourself with Overchannel: The first use of Overchannel is free. Every use after that before a long rest costs 2d12 necrotic damage per spell level. Maxing a 5th-level spell twice costs 10d12 damage, which bypasses your Dragonborn Damage Resistance and will outright kill a d6 Wizard.
• Misunderstanding Empowered Evocation: Empowered Evocation adds your INT modifier to one damage roll. For an AoE like Fireball, you roll once for all targets, so everyone takes the extra damage. For Scorching Ray, you roll separately for each beam, so only ONE beam gets the +INT damage. Stick to Magic Missile or AoEs.
• Wasting Potent Cantrip on Attack Rolls: Potent Cantrip at level 3 only triggers when a creature succeeds on a saving throw against your cantrip. If you miss with Fire Bolt (an attack roll), it does zero damage. Always use Toll the Dead against high-AC targets to guarantee damage.