How many bard spell slots you have at each level
Bard spell slots in D&D come from the Bard Features table of the 2024 rules (SRD 5.2.1): a new bard has 2 slots, and level 9 slots arrive at character level 17. A spell can be cast from a slot of its own level or any higher one. BardRoll tracks every slot and refills them on a long rest.
| Bard level | Spell slot level | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | |
| 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 18 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 19 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 20 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
Slots
How many spell slots does a bard have at first level?
2, all of them first-level. The slots grow almost every level after that, and by level 5 a bard has 4 first-level, 3 second-level and 2 third-level slots, 9 in all, with spells up to level 3. The table gives every row, and a zero is a real zero: a slot level the bard has not reached yet.
When does a bard get level 9 spell slots?
At character level 17, the last level that opens a new row of slots. The levels after it add slots to rows that already exist, which the table shows level by level, so a bard at level 20 has more of the middle slots but no new slot level.
Can a bard cast a spell with a higher-level slot?
Yes. A spell can be cast from a slot of its own level or any higher level, up to level 9, and many spells grow stronger when cast that way. The slot is spent at the level you cast from. In BardRoll, tap a prepared spell to cast it at its own level, or hold it to fan out every slot level that could pay for it and pick a higher one.
When do a bard's spell slots come back?
On a long rest, all of them. A short rest gives a bard no spell slots back. BardRoll's long rest refills every slot in one tap, along with Bardic Inspiration and hit points, and its short rest restores Bardic Inspiration from level 5 while leaving the slots alone.
How does BardRoll track spell slots?
Each slot level is a row on the character screen. Casting spends a slot from the level you cast at, a long rest refills the rows, and a slot can be recovered by hand when the table rules it back. Change your bard's level and the rows are rewritten to match the table, so the tracker never offers a slot the rules do not give.
Questions
- How many spell slots does a bard have at level 5?
- A level 5 bard has 9 spell slots under the 2024 rules: 4 first-level, 3 second-level and 2 third-level, which makes level 3 the highest spell level they can cast. The Bard Features table in the SRD 5.2.1 gives the same row, and a long rest refills every one of them.
- Does a bard get spell slots back on a short rest?
- No. Under the 2024 rules a bard regains expended spell slots only on a long rest. A short rest restores Bardic Inspiration once a bard reaches level 5 and gains Font of Inspiration, and that feature also lets a bard spend a spell slot to regain one use of Bardic Inspiration when the dice run out.