What is the 'arcane focus' in my attacks/spells?

Question

I am trying to play D&D and am making my first character sheet. I finished everything but one part is confusing me.

I have everything done for my sorcerer character sheet and one of the attacks/spells is called arcane focus. I can't find out what the bonus or the damage type is.

Please help, I have been searching for hours.

Are you using some software (such as the D&D Beyond website) to create the character sheet? I suspect there's a detail it'd be useful to explain that the current answers haven't included, but I'd prefer to check I'm right about that before I make some unfounded claims! — LizWeir, Jun 01 '20 at 07:43
Also possibly relevant, what type of item is your arcane focus? Is it a staff, an orb, or something similar? Or is it only listed as Arcane Focus on the sheet? — Upper_Case, Jun 01 '20 at 19:10

score 11 · Answer 1 · answered Jun 01 '20 at 01:55

An Arcane Focus is not an attack or spell, it is a piece of equipment.
In short, you use it to cast spells. It has no effect other than casting the spell.¹

From the Spellcasting chapter, under Components (PHB p.203):

Material (M)
Casting some spells requires particular objects, specified in parentheses in the component entry. A character can use a component pouch or a spellcasting focus (found in “Equipment”) in place of the components specified for a spell. But if a cost is indicated for a component, a character must have that specific component before he or she can cast the spell.

From the Equipment chapter (PHB p.151):

An arcane focus is a special item--an orb, a crystal, a rod, a specially constructed staff, a wand-like length of wood, or some similar item--designed to channel the power of arcane spells. A sorcerer, warlock, or wizard can use such an item as a spellcasting focus.

There is also a table listing the various items and their prices (PHB p.150).

¹ with one slight exception: an Arcane Focus staff can also be used as a Quarterstaff weapon.

If the staff counts, there is at some other exceptions... artificer's tools and infused items can act as spellcasting focuses. There are also ways (rare) to get focuses that add bonuses to the spells cast. In general though those don't apply to sorcerers. — J M, Jun 01 '20 at 14:18

score 5 · Answer 2 · edited Jun 16 '20 at 10:23

This is simply a tool used to cast spells with (PHB p. 151)

An arcane focus is a special item - an orb, a crystal, a rod, a specially constructed staff, a wand-like length of wood, or some similar item - designed to channel the power of arcane spells. A sorcerer, warlock, or wizard can use such an item as a spellcasting focus, as described in chapter 10.

When casting a spell, they require a combination of 3 different "components" - Verbal (i.e the "spoken" component), Somatic (gestures of the hands, etc), and Material (a cricket's leg, or a tongue of a lizard). The arcane focus can be used in place of the material component in your spell (PHB p. 203, emphasis mine).

MATERIAL (M)

Casting some spells requires particular objects, specified in parentheses in the component entry. A character can use a component pouch or a spellcasting focus (found in chapter 5) in place of the components specified for a spell. But if a cost is indicated for a component, a character must have that specific component before he or she can cast the spell.

What is the 'arcane focus' in my attacks/spells?

2 Answers2